Circumstantial Evidence
by Mahtoma
Summary: First half of a story I wrote almost five years ago. Someone is destroying Galaxy Police Space Stations and the likliest suspect is Ryoko.


Between Light and Shadow,  
Name and Deed:  
  
It is a time of darkness, a time of chaos, where two forces are locked in a timeless battle of wits and power. The prize: Total control over the Universe.  
On one side of the battlefield lies the Goddess Tokimi, a mysterious otherworldly entity who has manipulated the destiny of billions for centuries. She has chosen to side her considerable power with the Jurai Empire, a feudal government whose very power-base is unknown even to their leaders.  
On the other side of the conflict is the enigmatic Shadow Player, a creature of chaos and order, darkness and goodness, unfathomable to the universe, and whose power has shifted the fates of entire galaxies. His power is secretly backing the Galactic Assembly and their so-called peaceful, open-handed power structure.  
Held between these two forces, on a lone and distant planet called Earth, are a handful of people. Each person holds within himself or herself an untapped potential, be it physical, mental, or purely spiritual. These potentials are under the constant manipulations of the two players, forever being tossed into situations they do not understand. All while trying to live a pseudo-normal life in a place called the Masaki Shrine.  
  
Book 1: Circumstantial Evidence  
By   
Ryan Norman  
  
Chapter One: A Conundrum of Destruction  
One Week Ago  
An outpost on the fringe of the BorderZone known by the tedious registry of "Deep Range Research Station 791 of the Galaxy Police" floated through the silent orbit of which it took every four days. Life on the outpost was simplistic and dull. Inhabited by Assembly scientists and low-level Galaxy Police Officers, working together to examine, understand and explain the universe around them a bit better. It was a repetitious life they would have wished to continue...  
  
Commander Chk'Ra, sat at his raised observation seat, calmly examining the area around him. He watched as the officers under him scrambled about their daily lives, analyzing anomalies, directing stellar traffic, calculating and adjusting the station's numerous sensory equipment.  
[They work hard for me,] Chk'Ra thought to himself, [I'm very proud of them.] He attempted a smile through his half-metallic leonine jaws when a jolt of agony ripped through him. He reached his only uncovered limb over the cloaked side of his body and took a firm grip on the blackened stump that was once his right arm. After a moment, the pain subsided and he returned his furry paw to the armrest and gripped at it tightly with four clawed fingers.  
The operatives around him did not take notice of this unfortunate occurrence, nor did they the dozen times a day it happened. Every one of them sorrowfully grieved the fate that placed their elegant and proud Commander at the Galaxy Police's Main Head-Quarters that day when the energy life-form known as KAIN attacked and sent the inhabitants hurtling through space and time.  
Their Commander was found four days after the attack, a blackened half-corpse lying across a sandy beach with a drained location beacon on an unnamed planet in the Doshtor region. His right arm was gone and the left side of his face was irrevocably damaged. His right leg was also badly mangled, although not as bad as the arm or face. His left hand clutched an energy rifle, which had been completely emptied on some unseen opponent.  
It had been ten months since that incident. Ten months since the Galactic Council sent him to this station to put him out of the way. Ten months and the officers under him still looked at their Commander with awe. They all wondered at one time or another as to how a human, or a Korvian for that matter, could survive such pain with their mind intact. No one on that bridge knew, not even the recipient of these thoughts.   
Chk'Ra could not remember any of the events leading up to and during those four frightful and cruel days. He couldn't remember how he got there or how he lost his arm and mangled half his body. He could only remember the pain. And for him, the pain was memory enough.   
The Galaxy Police offered much in the way of assistance and repairs to Chk'Ra. The Council of Seven themselves ordered the best scientists and doctors from across Assembly Territory to assist and repair the gravely wounded Korvian. With their help, Chk'Ra could have had his mangled form repaired far more than it was. They could have given him a robotic arm and used nanites to repair the spinal damage that caused him to limp. They could have, but they didn't.  
"I will not have my soul destroyed by your gruesome machines. I will not have them!" Chk'Ra had raved when they offered the reparations to him. They listened and obeyed, though. It was his choice, his life. All that was fixed was his skull, and that was in order to save his life in the first place.  
  
The silence in the room was deafening, broken only by one Lieutenant, looking up worriedly from the deep space scanner console at his station as he spoke, "Commander Chk'Ra! Scanners are detecting an energy signature of unknown type and origin off to the aft side of the station!"  
The Commander pressed a mangled claw against a button on his armrest and the chair swiveled towards the Lieutenant's station. The officer was a Vexturian, an ancient alien race of Terran-looking creatures with pointed ears, four fingers, and a band of bone extending from the front of their shoulders to bend back and link into the back of their necks. Chk'Ra could not remember the boy's name, his mind badly damaged, similar to that of his body. He spoke, his voice a mixture of soft leather and harsh metal due to the half-replaced larynx, "Explain, Lieutenant. I want details!"  
Another officer, this one a gray-tinted Terran off-shoot species Chk'Ra could not remember the name of, an Ensign at the Security Perimeter station, turned toward him and spoke, "Sir, the energy output of the creature is that of a class twelve particle emission. Only three known ship classes generate that kind of energy output: The Souyja, the Ryo-Ohki, and the second generation of Jurai Battle ships," she explained.  
The Commander turned his head sharply at the Security Perimeter officer on his right and spoke to her, "Which of the three is it then? The Jurai have agreed not to enter this Sector and the Souyja was reported as destroyed. It isn't the Ryo-Ohki, is it?"  
The Lieutenant then spoke up, her voice filled with alarm, "It is not a space ship, sir. It is a single humanoid life form. The sensors describe it as a female. But what's really strange is that she doesn't appear to be wearing any kind of external survival suit."  
"What! That's impossible!" Chk'Ra stated, slamming his furred fist down on a console. "Why are those alarms going off?" he asked gruffly. The alarms had begun blaring through the station at full volume and red lights flashed all over the bridge. The Commander retreated into his chair, it almost looked like he was curling up into a ball as he covered his only ear from the horrible screeching.  
"The individual is taking up an aggressive posture. She is starting up some kind of pure matter/anti-matter reaction, sir. Materializing some kind of energy weapon with no devices evident," the Security Perimeter Ensign exclaimed.  
"I want all shields up and weapons at full armament now. Lieutenant, find out who this women is!" Chk'Ra ordered. Despite the pain, he got up quickly, and hobbled over to the Lieutenant's station, balancing on an old piece of wood that had drifted up to him while he was stranded on that beach so many months ago.  
  
An incredible blast of energy struck the shields of the station so hard that the orbit itself was thrown off. If let be after that, the station would most certainly burn up in the atmosphere of the lifeless planet below them within a few days. But the barrage did not stop. The first blast was followed up with two more equally powered assaults. The constant blasting of energy battered the poorly unequipped station senselessly.  
  
Inside the station, chaos ensued. But not from the officers themselves, just the assaulted station. The officers onboard were trained to stay calm and calculating in desperate situations.  
"Sir, I found out who the attacker is! Ugh," the Lieutenant screamed above the chaos and fell to the ground. A piece of flying console had struck him across his forehead, tearing a large gash open that streamed blackish blood.  
The Commander crawled over to the boy, bent down and somehow cradled the boy in his one arm trying to help, but feeling as if he was the current recipient of the attacks. Onto his already shattered mind instead of his horribly mangled body. "Who's attacking us, my boy. Tell me!" he pleaded, as if the knowledge would somehow alleviate the damage incurred to the station and the officers.  
"Reee, yok, ogh, Sssiiirrr..." the Lieutenant said in a final, barely whispered breath. Then he lay still, his body slumped in the grip of Chk'Ra's powerful, clawed fingers.  
"Ryoko," Chk'Ra said angrily, setting the cold, lifeless boy on the floor gently. He stood back up and gripped his walking stick tightly. A storm of emotions ravaged his body. He shrugged them off, all but anger. He turned to the Security Perimeter station and spoke, "Ensign?"  
"Yes, sir?" she called out, clinging to her console for dear life, tapping at weapons control systems.  
"Send out a distress signal. Tell them that Ryoko has attacked us. Tell them that they need to hunt down and kill this blordtwah!" the Commander screamed, banging his cane against the hard metal floor.  
  
Those were the last known words to be spoken on that bridge. At that moment, a blast struck the hull hard enough to puncture it. The beam broke through to the bridge area. The officers died a soundless, quick, and excruciatingly painful death as their shattered and crushed bodies floated toward the exit wound gaping in the station's hull.  
  
Outside, Ryoko, a strange feminine, Terran-looking creature with wildly spiked light-blue hair, large yellow eyes and black slitted pupils, prepared her final assault. A sphere of red-orange visible heat, slightly larger than her slender hands, appeared in front of her. The light from this sphere illuminated her curvaceous body, accentuated by the black and red form-fitting body suit she wore. She reached out and grasped the ball with her right hand. Upon contact, the energy that made up the sphere exploded outwards into one long cylindrical beam. She held the massive beam of hot energy out like a sword, slicing at the station with it, cutting cleanly through the hull on one side and coming out on the other.  
The station split in two and exploded, creating a soundless ball of quickly dissipated smoke and fire. Most of the station evaporated within moments, leaving a few final pieces of debris to drift toward the unnamed planet to burn up in re-entry.  
  
The creature known as Ryoko floated there for a moment. She spread her delicate lips wide and proceeded to laugh out loud, though no air or noise escaped nor entered her lungs for she was in a vacuum. A bit of debris tapped her foot and she looked down at it. It was a simple wooden cane, rotted and burned, still held by the death throe claws of Commander Chk'Ra. She picked the object up and again laughed her soundless laugh. And then, as quickly as the strange and violent girl had appeared, was gone.  
  
Chapter Two: The Problems of a Broken Heart  
Present Time  
On Earth, in a small, semi-secluded area of Japan, is, to everyone else's eyes, the normal-looking Masaki Shrine. The people who lived there, however, called their lives anything but normal as each of them tended to one task or another in their daily lives.  
  
Ayeka Jurai, the purple-haired crown princess of the Galactic Kingdom of Jurai, was attempting to get a young boy, Tenchi Masaki, to eat some of her newest cooking experiment. Nearby, Sasami Jurai, Ayeka's double-pony-tailed younger sister, was playing fetch with her good friend and small cabbit (half cat, half rabbit), Ryo-Ohki and a carrot. Sasami was constantly frustrated that the carrot would never return to her.   
Washu Hakubi, the red-haired, self-proclaimed scientific genius of the universe and parent/creator of Ryoko, was experimenting with yet another specimen that humankind, and probably every other species in the universe, should not find out about.   
Mihoshi Kuramitsu, the dark skinned, blonde, curly haired Galaxy Police Detective, was practicing her blaster skills with her partner, the increasingly aggravated and sensible Kiyone Makibi, teaching her.   
The only one who was missing from the collection of misfits and runaways was Ryoko, a girl whose blue hair belied her fiery temper, who was nowhere to be found, although none of the others noticed. They were all just relieved that there was no trouble originating from that particular person.  
  
"But, Lord Tenchi," Ayeka pleaded, her narrow face contorted, showing a begging look. "I spent hours fixing this meal for you. Please... Just try a little bit," she begged, holding out a wooden spoon which contained a substance that looked something like rice. A bit of the substance broke off, fell onto, and then burned a hole through part of Ayeka's kimono.  
"No, really, Ayeka," Tenchi replied, his face, a worried expression. "I'm really not all that hungry. I appreciate what you're trying to do for me but, Urmph..." he said, his arguments cut off as his mouth was suddenly assaulted by the spoon.  
Tenchi took a bit into his mouth as Ayeka removed the spoon. It took him a moment, but he finally succeeded in choking down the solid, hard pieces of rice. A moment passed and his skin suddenly turned a sickly shade of green. He grabbed at his throat with both hands and started gagging for air as he ran off toward his house.  
"Lord Tenchi!" Ayeka screamed after the young man, "Hmph, I suppose that he can not appreciate good home cooking," Ayeka said angrily.   
Ayeka reached the spoon back into the big, black pot which contained her cooking, then scooped some of the rice out. She placed the spoon under her nose, smelling the rice. Sensing nothing wrong, she placed the spoon in her mouth and tasted the weird rice herself. She bit down on it, analyzing the flavor. A moment of consideration passed and her face also turned a light green in color. She clamped her hands over her mouth and quickly ran off to the house.  
  
Mihoshi turned her head from her firing target and watched confusedly as the Princess ran off. The minuscule brain, covered by curly blonde hair, light brown skin, and an incredibly dense skull, slowly devised a statement, which of course, the Detective instantly blurted out: "Wonder what's wrong with her?"   
While looking off at the trail of smoke trailing behind the Princess, Mihoshi unthinkingly pressed on her blaster's trigger and fired off a random shot toward the target. The energy blast ripped from the barrel of the gun, streaking the target at the speed of light. The beam struck straight through the chest of one of the straw dummy targets. The gaping hole quickly lined over with a black, tar-like substance that, somehow, expanded and filled in the gap. Within seconds, the hole was gone; replaced by fresh hay and a new wool cover.  
"Will you please concentrate on your firing practice!" Kiyone shouted at her partner in frustration causing Mihoshi's head to turn back with a jerk. "I promised your Grandfather that I would teach you how to be a real detective. Next time you shoot, watch the dummy, dummy!" she yelled, her arms waving in the air.  
"OW! I don't know. But Kiyone, I am concentrating... I think," Mihoshi responded, her tiny mind barely comprehending the world around her, as she babbled out whatever came to her.  
"No, you don't know. Now pay attention!"   
Mihoshi struggled to think of a response when a blinking light shining on the bracelet of her right wrist cut off her two-second attention span. She stared at it for a moment, as if put in a trance by the beeping sound emanating from her bracelet. Finally, she spoke, "Oh, what's that! Do you think it's important, Kiyone?"  
"How am I supposed to know! Washu's still fixing my bracelet from the last target practice when you shot it!" Kiyone screamed, a vein forming on her smooth forehead as sweat dripped off her brow.  
"Well, excuse me!" Mihoshi responded, backing up slightly.  
"Well! What are you waiting for?! Answer it!" Kiyone yelled, smacking her partner across the back of her neck.  
"Okay, okay!" Mihoshi said, yelping in pain. "Yukinojo?" she asked, the bracelet raised toward her mouth.  
"Mihoshi, I have an urgent report from your commander in my data-banks." a warbled metallic voice answered, emanating from the mounted gem.  
"Okay, Yukinojo," Mihoshi said. "Ready, Kiyone?" the blonde detective turned to look at her partner as she pulled out a small pink cube, slightly larger than her hands, from a pocket in her pants that did not seem to be there a moment ago.  
"Yes, you numskull," Kiyone responded, whispering the last part.  
"Transport!" Mihoshi shouted as she manipulated the cube, causing a third of the object to tilt away from the bulk like a Rubix cube. She repositioned the piece, causing it to reshape itself to look just like it had before no seems showing where the two sections met. A light flashed from within the center of the cube and the air directly around the two detectives wavered. Then Mihoshi and Kiyone vanished, propelled at lightening fast speed into the lake next to the Shrine.  
  
The two detectives arrived moments later, in a technological room of metal, plastic and wiring that had the look of a futuristic space-ship cockpit. The room they were in was apparently within the lake next to the Masaki Shrine due to the fact that, when the detectives arrived, the blue and gray uniforms they wore were drenched from head to toe.  
"Do you always have to land the ship in the lake, Mihoshi? Look at my uniform, it's soaked!" Kiyone yelled, pulling off her drenched jacket in order to dry it off. Water splashed all over the room as she shook it, and her long, blue-tinted hair. The high-tech room they were in activated a suction unit and absorbed the excess water while an air vent dried the room.  
"Well, so is mine! It just happens!" the ditzy blonde responded.  
"That's the last time I let you fly the ship without an Autonav," Kiyone grumbled.  
"Sorry," Mihoshi said, her eyes watering with tears.  
This made Kiyone's mood change from anger to worry and she quickly attempted to rectify the situation. "Don't worry about it, Mihoshi. The water will dry off," she said soothingly as she put her jacket back on.  
Mihoshi just looked at her partner for a moment, wiping her tears away with a drenched white glove. "You mean it Kiyone?" she asked childishly.  
"Yes, of course I mean it."  
"Hooray! Kiyone's forgiven me! Kiyone forgave me!" the blonde detective started chanting as she jumped up and down, running around in circles.  
"Calm down Mihoshi, Yukinojo wants to tell us something."  
"Sorry," Mihoshi said. She then straightened up, turned toward the front of the cockpit, and spoke, "Yukinojo?"  
A strange looking configuration of metal, tubes and sensors lowered in a long column from the ceiling of the high tech cockpit. The column of electronics turned, pivoting its body so that its two equally spaced lenses could see the two young women. It spoke in a soothing electronic male voice, as a portion of its mass moved up and down in imitation of the human jaw, "Password, please."  
"Uhm, Little Red Riding Hood?" Mihoshi babbled.  
"Password authorized," the machine responded.  
Kiyone smacked her head to her forehead in anger, "I can't believe that's her password."  
The machine didn't seem to notice Kiyone's actions, "Mihoshi, Kiyone. I've been calling you for hours! Where have you been?" it said, its voice clearly agitated.  
"We're so sorry, Yukinojo," Mihoshi said.  
"This pin-head is the only one with a working transmitter so I didn't get the message until she did" Kiyone complained, pointing a thumb at her dim-witted partner.   
"I understand," Yukinojo responded, its voice mimicking sympathy. "Do you wish to hear the report now?"  
"Yes please, Yukinojo," Mihoshi said.  
"Very well..." the robotic column known as Yukinojo said. Lights activated all over the cockpit as the robot accessed the specified data.   
After a moment Yukinojo spoke: "At 0930 one week ago, a Galaxy Police research station, registry number 791, under the control of Commander Chk'Ra, encountered a dangerous life form and, shortly afterward, were completely destroyed. The nearby outpost, 801, received a distress signal sent by the station in outdated code. They sent out a rescue team who shortly discovered that the outpost was completely destroyed. This is quickly proving to be a conundrum, as all that has really been discovered about this event is that this is the ninth incident of destroyed space stations in the past four weeks."  
"Why would someone destroy space stations?" Mihoshi asked childishly. "I mean, space stations are nice, big, and pretty to look at..." the blonde Detective babbled on.  
Kiyone smacked her hand to her head and mumbled, "Don't worry about it, Mihoshi." She then composed herself enough to look back up at Yukinojo and said, "Continue, please."   
"While examining the station's orbiting wreckage and reports from the others, something odd was noticed. Every station that has been destroyed recently have all had at least one survivor of KAIN's attack on the Galaxy Police Head Quarters in its crew compliment. Someone appears to be taking them out one by one."  
"But why would someone be killing off survivors of that incident? KAIN's dead, isn't he?" Mihoshi said dumbly.  
"That is not the point, Mihoshi!" Kiyone responded, smacking her dim-witted partner on the head. "It doesn't really matter that KAIN's dead. Some KAIN worshipper could be after the survivors to get their revenge."  
She stopped for a moment to contemplate what the mechanoid had told her and then spoke, "Station 791... Yukinojo, can you give me an image of this 'Commander Chk'Ra'?" Kiyone asked, rubbing her chin in deep contemplative thought.  
"Yes mam," Yukinojo said, retracting into the long column that served as his neck.   
More computer systems lit up readily after their prolonged time in wait-state and a screen with no mass and a blackish tint appeared in front of them. On it a small screen explained that the operating system used by the computer was Windows 2055 and that the room they were in was the cockpit of a space ship called the "Yagami".  
Another screen showed two pictures of Commander Chk'Ra, one showed him as he once was, wholly Korvian. The other showed him after the KAIN incident, his body greatly modified, his face, originally proud and handsome, now dull and marked, a portion having been completely replaced by a curved chrome plate and a large ruby-like eyepiece placed in the dull metallic eye socket.   
Mihoshi stifled a yelp as she examined the second picture. Kiyone then smacked the blonde detective against the back of the head, knocking the blonde back to what little sense she has.   
Kiyone looked back up at the pictures, straining her mind to uncover very old memories. After a moment, her face brightened and she snapped her fingers. "I know that Commander." she said, more to herself then to her partner. "I trained under him at the Galaxy Police Field Detective's course. He was the best field operative I ever had the pleasure to learn from," her face lit up with fondness, which quickly reverted to sadness. "This is awful, though. I had heard he was disfigured after KAIN's assault but I didn't know it was that badly! And now he's dead!" she stifled a tear.  
The strange cylindrical creature named Yukinojo once again extended its body out of the slot built for it out of the wall. It looked at Kiyone for a second and then replied, "Well, from the information we have collected, we can assume that Commander Chk'Ra was a target of this assassin."  
"What kind of information. And don't spare the details," Kiyone asked forcefully.  
Yukinojo backed up for a moment and then continued, "Well, mam, when the rescue team arrived, they found his body. Now, although finding bodies wasn't unexpected, it was unusual to find it floating in a container made out of the remains of the station. Not to mention the extensive physical mutilations," the robot said. It paused, looking at Mihoshi. "Are you sure she should hear this part?" he asked Kiyone, motioning to Mihoshi with the bulk of its body.   
"She'll be fine. Now continue," Kiyone replied, becoming very aggravated at the robot.  
Yukinojo made an electronic gulp, backed up a little more, and spoke again, "It seams the assassin wanted a trophy from the victim. A very hot object had sheared off his remaining arm. No attempts to find the limb have been successful, so we assume the assassin took it.  
"The assassin also enjoyed keeping count of their victims. On the Commander's forehead there were thirteen gash marks. This was cross-checked and we found the number is the same as that of the total number of Galaxy Police Headquarters survivors killed in these incidents." it said.  
"Ewww, gross!" Mihoshi exclaimed, her white-gloved hands held together in fists, hands raised to just below her mouth.  
"Mihoshi, would you shut up!" Kiyone screamed, lifting her partner by the collar of her uniform jacket, showing her to be unusually strong for such a "normal" female. Still holding Mihoshi up, Kiyone turned her head to the cylindrical robot and said, "Yukinojo, continue."  
Yukinojo made another electronic gulp and finished the rest of his report, "Uhm, yes mam. After numerous hours of reconstructing data tapes and the unfinished emergency report, the rescue team managed to salvage the name of the suspected assassin: 'Ryoko'."  
"Ryoko! That bitch!" Kiyone screamed. She dropped Mihoshi, who fell to the ground, landing with the usual "Ow". Kiyone ignored her partner's pain and set off running into the cargo bay where all the weaponry was stored.  
  
Chapter Three: He Who Wears the Badge  
Two Weeks Ago  
"Reports, reports, this is so aggravating! I can't believe Captain Vi'Gor wants me to fill out these reports in triplicate!" a young man wearing a strange gray and white Galaxy Police uniform complained, typing at a black volumeless slate floating in the air. In front of him lay a screen made of a similar substance.  
"Lieutenant Commander Deevra Murishawa, sir, the file you have requested has arrived," a voice coming from nowhere said.  
"Ah, finally," the man replied, a large, malformed smile appearing on his otherwise smooth face, "Put it through," he said. Another of the strange black-tinted screens appeared to the man's right and he shifted his seat toward that direction.  
"Lieutenant Commander Deevra Murishawa, we have received your request to be assigned to the case on the criminal assaulting Galaxy Police stations. Would you like details?" a blank Terran-looking face pictured on the screen said.  
[They're getting better with the way the info-gatherers look, but the personality program just rips right through to show their artificial origins,] Deevra thought. "Yes, I would like details," he said impersonally.  
"You are given full authorization for the tracking and capture of the individual suspected for destroying Galaxy Police stations. We have confirmed the name and whereabouts of the individual in question," and the face paused.  
"Continue, you stupid machine!" Deevra shouted, alarming a dozen or so fellow GP officers around him with the pitch and intensity of his voice.  
"Very well," the face said, not reacting to Deevra's shouting, "The whereabouts of the individual is: Earth, Japan," the information-gatherer said, stopping to let the thoughts soak in. "You will be given a fully authorized class 'A' Retrieval Ship built with a fully working JumpGate system. The main craft will carry two hundred quantum torpedoes fireable through ten torpedo tubes, one hundred fusion missiles, fireable by the same. Fifty batteries of plasma cannons, fifty particle chargers, twenty-five destabilizers, and the 'planet buster' warp cannon. Twenty standard fighter craft are also on-board.  
"You will also be given a 'Lander' model scout ship heavily armed with five unidimensional cannons, twenty laser cannons and fifteen missile pods that fire organic destabilizers. The shuttle will be carrying twenty 'Hostile Atmosphere' armored suits with equipment to repair and fully modify them for your-our-our needs. Fifteen 'Drop Trooper' armored suits for backup and assistance. Two commando units with personally specialized suits and a 'Force Battalion' crew of thirty to pilot the retrieval ship and shuttle. You will also be promoted to the temporary rank of 'Captain'. If you succeed in capturing this individual you will keep the rank and equipment."  
"Is that all? Sheesh, it appears they don't trust me," Deevra commented snippily.  
"It is my understanding, sir, that this amount of equipment and troops is more than enough to take on any known hostile life-form in the galaxy. Excepting KAIN, of course. And the promotion is thought to be a sufficient reward for taking on such a dangerous mission."  
"I was being sarcastic! Stupid computer!" Deevra said, swiping a gloved hand at it, contacting nothing as it sweeped through the screen.  
"That is not very nice, sir," the face complained, its image wavering from the static interference of Deevra's hand. "My form is not designed for organics."  
"No one has ever had the misfortune of calling me a 'nice' person," Deevra said in a cruel and vicious tone. Holding his hands behind his head he slumped back in his chair, propping his feet on the desktop. A cuff and sleeve slipped down his wrist revealing his skin to have tiny, sharp spikes covering his arm in a sparse coat almost like fur. He straightened the cuff out and continued to lay back comfortably, "Continue, stupid computer."   
"You have been assigned two extra officers, their equipment, and assistants. A Galaxy Police personal financial specialist named Pheros and his two specialists. And a Jurai Royal Ambassador named Ge'Kahl and his twenty armed bodyguards. The Jurai royal council has agreed to supply us with a group of 'hostile takeover' fighter troops, fully specialized to combat any threat necessary to help you complete this mission."  
"What!? An accountant and a high-and-mighty?! Why did they send me these two? Who am I going after anyway?"  
The face straightened up, reaching a before-then nonexistent hand into view in order to straighten a collar that also did not exist before. "It appears, sir, that the individual you are to apprehend is: Ryoko."  
Deevra suddenly straightened up in his chair, his eyes grew dim and his pupils retracted. He roughly gnawed his teeth together as he spat out the name, "Ryoko!"  
  
Chapter Four: Conspiratorial Experiences  
Two Months ago (Between one eyeblink and another)  
"Well, Clay. I have saved you from being eliminated by KAIN and have even returned you to my employment. Now why should I have done that?" a large, feminine appearing inter-dimensional being said to a small bell shaped man standing on a platform bellow her. The creature was magnificent, large and imposing, dozens of times the size of the small man before her and her entire body radiated an intense light. She wore a strange looking crown-like object on her forehead that spread out, far from her head to bend back in flowing strands toward the human-like silhouettes of slightly smaller size behind her. Her garb was pale, like the rest of her, light, and almost invisible to the eye. Her skin was the same way: pale, cadaverous, frail. However, her form radiated immense power as well as light.  
"You are right, Lady Tokimi. Why have you saved me from being destroyed by KAIN and rehiring me?" the man known as Clay asked, bowing his ugly bearded head before the lit creature. This man was a complete opposite of the creature he spoke to: short, fat, and bell-shaped. His white hair was long and flowed out in large clumps to curl up and around itself, forming circular gaps just before his hair reached his shoulders; his long beard was much the same way. One of his eyes was missing, instead of a beady black eye; a pure reflective black gem-like object was set into the socket.  
"Washu, Clay," the giant energy being known as Lady Tokimi answered, one of the silhouettes in the background seemed to gleam. Clay ignored this, believing it to be an illusion. Although it "did" look like Washu...   
"What do you mean by 'Washu'? Do you want me to destroy her for not agreeing to meet with you?"  
"No, Clay, I do not," Tokimi said, almost smiling as she looked down at him. "I still wish to converse with her. Bring her to me and I will forgive you. I will give you whatever you desire to help you with this task," Tokimi responded, speaking to him like a parent would a child, giving him simple toys and the child not knowing any better, is content.  
"Thank you, Lady Tokimi. You are too kind," Clay hesitated, taking a deep breath and then speaking, "But I am afraid I must ask one other thing from you."  
"What else might you need in order to bring Washu to me, Clay?" Tokimi answered, for the first time since Clay had met her the entity showed a look of surprise.  
"One who has also suffered greatly at the hands of Washu. One whose hatred for her burns through their soul almost as much as mine."  
"You do not mean KAIN, do you Clay?"  
"No, my Lady. I humbly request for you to resurrect Kagato for me."  
"I can not do that Clay."  
"But, my Lady. You are Tokimi. You can do anything. Why can't you resurrect Kagato?"  
"Because Kagato is not dead, Clay. I can, however, bring him here. Whether he will assist you or not is out of my hands, though. You must work that out for yourself."  
"Thank you, Lady Tokimi."  
"I will not permit failure again. Good-bye, Dr. Clay, I await Washu," Tokimi said, her massive image wavered and vanished.  
"Lady. Where, what happened?" Clay said, shocked as his surroundings vanished back to the simpler yet still complex architecture of another dimensional gateway. "D3, sir, where did Lady Tokimi go?" Clay asked the air.  
A blood-red jewel floating in the air in front of Clay started to glow brightly and the image of an old bearded man's head coalesced, the jewel placed upon the forehead of the ethereal visage. His face was aged and lined with the effects of having lived a long and strenuous lifetime. Yet his appearance gave no indication of his life and health to be soon faltering. The image spoke in a harsh grainy texture yet betrayed a calm kindness and soothing. "Lady Tokimi can not stay here for an indefinitely long period of time. She has to return to her own dimension to recuperate."  
"I see. When will Kagato arrive?" Clay asked the image.  
"I was unaware of Lord Kagato's arrival," the image said solemnly.  
"What?! Lady Tokimi has deceived me! She said she would bring him to me."  
"I have heard nothing to substantiate this, Dr. Clay," the visage responded.  
Clay was furious. He started to complain but then rethought his tactics. "Well, my pretty new assistant and I can deal with Washu ourselves," Clay announced. He quickly turned and walked back to his newly built "Goddess Tokimi".   
  
D3, whose volumeless form stayed in the room, floating on nothingness, vanished, only to be replaced with the very tactile form of a young man with long white hair flowing back from his head in random spikes. The man's green clothing concealed a form not quite there in earthly terms of reality. Upon the man's sharply curved nose there lay mounted a pair of silver spectacles, too small to be for anything but appearance. His white leather gloved hands held a glowing green blade made of nothing but pure energy. He nodded his head down and as suddenly as he appeared, he disappeared into the mist.  
  
"Well, Lady Tokimi, what do you have in store for Doctor Clay?" the bodiless entity of D3 asked the extra-dimensional life form behind him. His solemn eyes regarded the image of Clay's departing ship with curiosity.  
"Whatever do you mean, D3?" Tokimi replied quizzically, giving the departing ship a slight glance, causing the image of it to vanish.  
"You did not tell him everything about this assignment. Not only that, you have created a duplicate of Kagato to assist him and did not bother to inform him about it."  
"Yes, I suppose I have. I believe Clay will attempt a similar ploy as he tried before. If he does this, I do not think Clay would be capable of completing his assignment without 'someone' to watch over him. Do you disagree?"  
"No. I understand it now, my Lady," D3 said, pausing for a moment, "However, there is still the excess information?"  
"What does that matter with Clay's work?"  
"Would it not have been important to tell him about the new one who is about to be born?"  
"It would not help him any to know of this. The new one is of no concern to me. Just another wasteful piece of flesh for me to toy with."  
"I see, my Lady."  
"Go now, D3. Set to work my newest plans. And remember to leave the boy Tenchi out of your manipulations."  
"As you wish, my Lady," and with that, D3 vanished from the Fortress's plane of existence.  
Lady Tokimi stood there alone. This magnificent creature left to herself, with only her multitudes of shadows to keep her company.   
An image appeared of the red-haired women called Washu. The scientist was happily tapping away at a computer.   
Lady Tokimi intently examined the image for many minutes, and then spoke, "What are you up to, my sister? Why are you doing this?" and with that, Tokimi, the image, and even the fortress, vanished from existence.  
  
Chapter Five: The Phoenix's Rebirth  
Present time.  
Washu sat atop her floating red pillow and typed away at her insubstantial keyboard, making various calculations. Her minuscule form was a deception, her small, red-haired body contained a woman of power and intelligence, if not seriousness. Her delicate form, wrapped in green and beige clothing, reminiscent of an earlier time period and an earlier life were simply wrappings. She did not need them, any more than she needed this minuscule body. She simply chose to have them.  
One link after another was completed, coalescing into the image of a pale skinned boy on the computer screen. The computer simulation brightened, showing the image accompanied by some small words, almost illegible. Washu smiled in satisfaction at the completed programming.   
"It's ready!" she said to herself, smiling.  
She got up off of her floating cushion and walked over to a small, chrome tinted cylindrical machine placed in a corner of the gigantic inter-dimensional lab she was situated in. She pressed a button on the machine and a door slid open, releasing a stream of cold air, so frigid that it could be seen. Washu's own breath frosted at the mere vicinity to the cylinder.  
A small round petri dish emerged from the machine about 4 inches in diameter. Washu grabbed the petri dish and nuzzled it with her left check, neglecting to notice the frigidness of it, like a mother would a child. She carried the object over to another, larger machine with a clear glass tube that predominated the device connected to it.   
She inserted the object into a side of the electronic portion of the machine and tapped a few keys. The petri dish opened causing the cells inside to be expulsed into the tube, which was filled with some sort of clear liquid. The liquid bubbled, darkening to an opaque white, blocking out the cells.   
[It would be finished soon...] she told herself, overcome with joy. [My first new creation in seven-hundred years.]  
  
Kiyone rushed into the cargo bay of the Yagami. She ran over to a large blue machine partially covered by a tarp. She clamored up onto a massive cannon mounted on what appeared to be the machine's right arm. She continued to climb up the machine's shoulder, grabbed a pole mounted to the back of the things head and swung herself into a compartment built into the back of the machine, feet first.   
Once inside, Kiyone sat down in a padded harness and strapped herself in. She tapped on a few buttons and switches, bringing the massive mechanized thing to life. The view-screen directly in front of Kiyone turned transparent, allowing her to see the tarp covering the device's front and little else. Smaller screens, built diagonally outward from the side of the view-screen, activated, relating various information to the female pilot. With a few taps on the main console, the hatch in the back of the machine closed and shut, sealing the detective inside it.   
Kiyone keyed at the machine's main keys relating to the Cargo Bay's controls; the entry door to the Cargo Bay closed and the room reflexively vacuumed all the air out.   
Kiyone slipped a strange head harness over her long blue-black hair and strapped it down. She spoke various commands into the microphone on the harness's side and the machine readily replied. She then reached her delicate hands into two identical wrist harnesses, built on opposite sides of the machine's cockpit. Her left hand grabbed the finger shaped handle inside the harness and maneuvered the machine's left arm to knock the tarp off of it. Her right hand reached out and grabbed a handle that was shaped more like the grip of a handgun, and reflexively squeezed the trigger. The machine's right arm weapon barrel lit up like a light-bulb. A spark of energy shot out of it, refracting off of the magnetized walls.   
Kiyone also placed her slender legs into two boot harnesses covered with pressure sensors, built on tracks mounted to the floor of the cockpit. The boots locked around her feet and moved slightly as she settled her legs in, causing the machine to stomp about a bit. She smiled a bitter and warped smile.  
  
Water from the lake gushed into the massive Cargo Bay as the main hanger door opened at Kiyone's command. She tapped at several keys and used the machine's hand and leg controls to maneuver the large metallic unit to the opening, which was now quickly filling with water.   
After about a minute, the water completely filled the room. Kiyone activated the Mecha's air fans and manipulated controls, maneuvering the massive machine out of the Cargo Bay hanger and into the Masaki Lake. She then repositioned and launched the vehicle up to the surface and jumped up onto dry land.  
Once Kiyone reached dry land, she activated the flame jets, shooting off into the sky to search for her prey. She scanned the area for her quarry, but found nothing.   
Bitter and angry, Kiyone lowered the massive weapon to the ground, landing with a thump. Kiyone quickly redirected the machine to move toward the Masaki home, knowing the chances of finding her opponent would be greater there.   
  
Soon after arriving near the home, the Mecha's sensors found the unique energy signature of Kiyone's foe. The women known as Ryoko was near the house, floating through the air, armed wrapped around the shoulders of the young man, Tenchi Masaki.  
Kiyone stomped toward the two on foot, activating her Mecha's powerful weaponry. The sounds and vibrations caused the two young people to lift their heads and look at her in surprise. Ryoko had a less then threatening look on her face as her entire form suddenly became jagged, as if glass had shattered in front of her, and then she was gone.  
[Damn it! Where did she go to]" Kiyone thought angrily. She quickly started the scanners directing them all around her Mecha to find Ryoko.   
Ryoko had not gone far, she reappeared on top of the Mecha and pried at the hatch lid. "Mihoshi, stop messing with these stupid suits. You know you'll never get them to work right," Ryoko shouted, trying to find where to lift the entry hatch.  
[She thinks I'm Mihoshi! She'll learn differently very soon!] Kiyone quickly maneuvered her Mecha cannon to point at an angle that would hit Ryoko but miss any of the vital Mecha components on the top of the machine. The cannon fired a strong blast, spewing wave after wave of energy at Ryoko. The Space Pirate just dodged off to the side, landing on the ground to the right of the Mecha.  
Kiyone continued to fire, maneuvering the cannon without stopping. Ryoko just dodged again. The blasts struck the ground, ripping the soil and grass up as if it were tissue paper.  
Ryoko maneuvered into range and fired a blast of her own at the blue tinted Mecha. Beams of intense heated energy flew from the girl's fingertips. Kiyone activated the security shield, causing the blasts to ricochet off and be redirected at the ground, shredding it further. Kiyone fired her jets, blasting into the air.  
Once in the air, Kiyone fired off a volley of sub-dimensional missiles at Ryoko. Ryoko attempted to fly out of their range but the missiles just curved along with her. Ryoko then teleported away, just as the dangerous missiles came within inches of her, and to what she thought was safety. But the missiles did the same, teleporting to the same place Ryoko was. They exploded, knocking the blue-black haired woman out of the air.   
  
In Washu's sub-space lab, the child-like scientist watched these events with worry. She switched constantly from an image of the fight to her work on the strange machine she was working on earlier. The few cells of tissue she had inserted in the machine had grown amazingly quickly, forming the fur-coated nude body of a young man.  
"Damn. Ryoko, you can handle yourself better than that!" Washu mumbled to herself as she worked. "I guess I'll have to activate the Guardian sooner than I expected..." and with that, she turned a large red crank, releasing a flesh-colored liquid into the tube.   
The liquid massed together around the man's body, covering everything except the top of his head. After a moment, the liquid hardened, becoming a flexible layer of skin on the boy. The oxygenated liquid quickly drained out of the tube, and the young man's eyes opened.  
  
Kiyone dropped to the ground, stomping over to the fallen woman. Tenchi ran at the Mecha, trying to stop it without any weapons. Kiyone turned and raised the Mecha's right arm to swat away the boy...   
But... As she looked at him, she couldn't attack. There was something strange about him, his courage, his faith, and his urge to defend his friends. She felt a trickle of wetness flow over her cheek. She reaches up with her left hand and brushes the tear away. Somehow, she just couldn't force herself to hurt this boy.  
Kiyone quickly turned away and walked right up to Ryoko. Her Mecha's left grapplers asserted themselves around the demon girl's neck, the metal tightly squeezing the girl's flesh. Kiyone manipulated the Mecha's controls allowing her to roughly lift Ryoko into the air by her neck. Kiyone readied her plasma cannon and aimed it at Ryoko's head.  
"This is for my mentor and friend, Ryoko," Kiyone spoke, her voice traveled outside the Mecha via a special intercom. It did not matter, Ryoko was in no condition to fight or talk back.   
Kiyone's finger tensed over the firing trigger, as if she was waiting for something, anything to give her a reason. Then, just as Kiyone was about to fire, a volley of plasma blasts struck the back of her Mecha. She turned, infuriated at the distraction, her grappler released Ryoko, who slumped back to the shredded ground, still unconscious.   
  
"Who had fired at her?" Kiyone thought, "The boy, Tenchi?! No he was unarmed and couldn't get a plasma cannon so quickly, let alone know how to use one. So who was it?"  
She looked behind her and found an unfamiliar boy staring straight back at her, even through the opaque visor plate. His skin was as pale as a corpse, yet his face beamed of life. His eyes were a bright yellow, with dark black slitted pupils. His nose sharply curved, over a plain, solid mouth, filled with hatred. His hair was long and scraggly, draped over his shoulders like a red-dyed mop. He wore a simple white loose-fitting shirt and dark black slacks that didn't quite fit him. In his hands he held a plasma cannon, Mark 36. He gripped it tightly and prepared to shoot another volley at her if she should move towards Ryoko again.  
Kiyone turned the Mecha completely around. She reached the Mecha's right hand out to the boy, but received a second volley of blasts in response. The Mecha's hand exploded into shrapnel, splattering oil and electronics across the view-plate of the fearsome machine. She prepared to respond with a volley of missiles but... Washu appeared between them.  
Kiyone shifted her target to the young red-headed scientist and fired... However the missiles were unable to reply, unable to launch since they had evaporated from their silos. No smoke, no explosion, they just vanished. Washu clicked her fingers and the massive, hulking Mecha just crumpled to the ground, every inch of welding on it having vanished.  
Kiyone struggled out of the fragments of metal that made up what used to be her Mecha. She staggered over to Washu and spoke: "Why did you do that, Washu? And who is he?" she asked, and then fainted.  
  
When Kiyone awoke, two hours later, she found herself lying in a hospital bed, she jerked up and scanned the room for a nurse. She found a strange looking nurse, short with long red hair that barely reached the floor. The nurse turned to Kiyone and smiled. It was Washu.  
"This isn't a hospital. Washu, what happened and who was that boy?" Kiyone asked, seriously con-fused at the events occurring around her.  
"Who, Naotaki?" Washu mused. Her eyes lit up with realization, "Of course! You never met him. He was the Operative who went after KAIN solo," Washu explained.  
"I thought he was dead," Kiyone said, dazedly.  
"No, no, no. Well... Yes. He *was* dead. But now he's up and about thanks to..." the girl paused for effect, "The Greatest Genius Scientist In The Universe!" At that point, two strange deformed puppet versions of Washu with smooth straight arms and strangely disfigured jointed mouths, appeared on her shoulders. The only distinguishing characteristic between the two are an 'A' and a 'B' on their belts.  
"You are the greatest, Washu!" the one marked 'A' said in a warped version of Washu's own voice.  
"The greatest in the universe!" the other one, marked 'B' spoke in the same warbled voice.  
"Why did he attack me, then? I had a perfectly good reason to want to kill Ryoko."  
"Do you really think that I would let you kill my daughter?" Washu asked sarcastically. "No! I merely reprogrammed Naotaki's mind on an organic level. He doesn't remember KAIN, his death, or his previous life. I also implanted an undying love and responsibility toward Ryoko. He would easily sacrifice his life for her."  
"Why did you do that?"  
"I was in a good mood."  
"Oh, that explains everything," Kiyone said woozily, and fell back to the bed, unconscious again.  
  
Chapter Six: Uneasy Alliances  
One Week, Six Days Ago  
"So, you must be Commander Deevra," Ge'Kahl said uneasily as he shook Deevra by the hand. Ge'Kahl seemed to stare at Deevra's cuff, which concealed his abnormal skin.  
Deevra looked over the ambassador impassively. He was young, a 'boy' in his eyes. He wore a long flowing cloak that connected to thin, branch-like objects that hallooed over the man's shoulders, joining together at a point behind his back. What Deevra could see was a gold and brown tunic-like uniform, woven to fit around the boy. His face betrayed a handsomeness unlike most of the Jurai. A 'Terran' handsomeness. The eyes were beaded and cold, his face thick and stern. It gave Deevra the impression that the boy was constantly sweating.  
"I was under the impression that my new rank was to be 'Captain', Mr. Ambassador," Deevra responded coldly, snatching away his hand from the ambassador.  
"Now why would I give you that rank?" the Personnel Accounts Advisor named Pheros announced.  
"I was also under the impression that you were an advisor, not a mission organizer. This mission must be costing the Galaxy Police accounts hundreds, of thousands of Nuyen," Deevra responded, shoving the Ambassador to the side to examine this new threat to his position. He already disliked the Ambassador, he was Jurai and the Jurai hated him and his kind.  
Deevra examined this "accountant" as he liked to call him. He had always hated long pronouncements of positions of authority and this man was like a physical manifestation of that stereotype. He was a Noctian, a short, red-eyed and gray-skinned creature. He was young, even more of a "boy" then Ge'Kahl was. The man wore a standard Galaxy police outfit, altered only to include a bandanna and a loop to carry his accounting computer. His face was dull and ugly, the skin, smooth and emotionless. His face betrayed nothing, no emotion known to man, however, his eyes did. The two shining, pupilless red orbs switched from side to side, looking for some unknown enemy that wasn't there.  
"We can't have that, now can we? We can't have a simple Retrieval Specialist outranking us. This mission is important and we can't have you screwing it up!" The accountant responded hatefully while attempting to sound cordial and emotionless.  
"We?! Us?! You can't mean that, can you? This 'ambassador' isn't even an official member of the Galaxy Police. He has no rank with us. I won't take orders from him!" Deevra snorted, "Bring a real soldier and I'll gladly follow him." He gripped his specialized Mark 33' tightly, not taking it out but still carrying it viciously.  
"I am not a non-ranking officer. I am a member of Galaxy Police. I am Admiral Ge'Kahl, in charge of alliance negotiations and border disputes with the Galactic Assembly. I have a rank befitting my status. Being a GP allows for greater peacefulness between us," Ge'Kahl responded snidely.  
"Oh, great, you are an officer. An Admiral, no less," Deevra complained. "Well, Admiral... I still don't want to watch this stupid display of egotism. I have a job to do and a *boy* like you isn't going to get in my way!" he snorted.  
"*Boy*!" Ge'Kahl snarled with apparent disgust, "How can you call me a *boy*?"  
"I'm at least four-hundred years your elder. That's how."  
"Four-hundred yea... That's impossible! I'm three-hundred and twenty seven years old..." Ge'Kahl complained.  
"Exactly! A boy! Come back to me in a hundred years and we'll see how mature you are then," Deevra responded matter-of-factly.   
At that point, Ge'Kahl snapped, jumped at Deevra, and grabbed him by his collar. He lifted Deevra up by his collar, a full foot into the air, and stared hatefully up into the Commander's serene face through ugly green eyes. Deevra relaxed, slumped his body in the 'boys' grip, just looking down at him.  
"I know, Deevra," Ge'Kahl said in a low tone. "I know you are an Illnian slime. You are a horrible freak of nature, a half-bread. If you don't do what I say, your 'friends' will find out about you, blood-letter. You will lose everything,"  
"I will do nothing of the sort, 'boy'," Deevra responded loudly, "Now let go of me or my trident will strike deep!" Deevra said, jabbing a strange blunt tipped object into Ge'Kahl's chest.  
Ge'Kahl looked at the weapon in Deevra's hands, his eyes widened and he dropped the Commander. He stared at the device intently, half filled with fear, half with outrage.  
The object Commander Deevra held was not his specialized Mark 33', though that would have made Ge'Kahl drop the Commander just as well. No, it was a strange object, a long slender pole, topped by three angled devices spread out from the pole an even space apart, framing a triangle. But the object was not what worried the ambassador. What worried him was the composition; it was covered in strange, scale-like objects that fit in place perfectly. Only the Jurai could make such a device. Only one with the blood of Jurai could hold or wield it. The thought was infuriating.  
"How did you get that weapon, half-breed? Only one of the Jurai holy family can wield a key!" Ge'Kahl screamed.  
"I built it myself, 'boy', I am using it myself. Why should you care?" Deevra responded.  
At this point most of the people in the area fled, even Pheros the accountant. Those who did not were trampled beneath their fellow crewmember's feet. Even they left, getting up slowly and limping away as fast as they could.  
"I challenge you half-breed. A duel to the death. Do you accept?"  
"I accept," Deevra said, gripping his trident violently, green sparks erupted from the tri-pods at the end of the pole. A cylindrical object, about the length of a knife erupted from them. He held the trident out in front of him, in a purely violent fighting stance.  
"Very well, you will face the wrath of my tr'gahls," Ge'Kahl shouted, flinging the capes to his side. It revealed that, strapped to his thighs, were two glove-like things, made out of the same scales that Deevra's trident were made out of. He slipped his hands down into them, pressed his arms against the leg straps, causing the gloves to snap easily into place. He pulled back, releasing them, and pointed them at Deevra.  
The fingertips on the right gauntlet alit in blue energy, then launched from the tips, extending to the length of a dagger's blade. He clenched the gauntlet into a fist and the blades sparked, shifted, and moved into a new position at the top of his fist. The blades merged into one, extended into a blade half the size of the young ambassador. He held it tightly, even though there was nothing to hold.  
The second gauntlet looked different than the first, it had a large amount of spiked scales on its outer side. The tips sparked, linking one to another. When the linkage was complete the entire side turned a bright blue that expanded into a form of shield.  
"Nice stuff, 'boy'. You have two weapons. I thought it was one per Jurai. Must mean that you have weaker skills," Deevra mused aloud.  
"Enough talk, Commander, fight!!!"  
Ge'Kahl raised his shield as Deevra attacked, his trident struck the shield, flipping up and over by using the shield as a sort of high jump post. He flipped behind and struck at Ge'Kahl's right gauntlet. The Admiral dodged, bringing his powerful sword into play by deflecting the triadic weapon.  
"Not too bad," Deevra mused, "But still childish."  
"Damn you! I am not a child!" Ge'Kahl screamed striking violently at Deevra's trident with clenched fists and sword.   
The blade of Ge'Kahl's sword became caught between the smaller blades of Deevra's trident and the direct and prolonged interaction caused the two strange weapons to negate each other. In doing this, the negation caused an explosion that knocked the two apart. The two combatants quickly scrambled to their feet and attacked each other again. Deevra calmly and skillfully parried every violent and maniacal attack Ge'Kahl made.  
  
After a long period of time had passed, Ge'Kahl finally made a mistake in his fighting technique, leaving him open to attack by Deevra. The Commander attacked, striking the boy's gauntlet. Sparks flew and Ge'Kahl's weapons died. The ambassador slumped to the floor, giving up.  
"Finish it, Commander," I give up. You can lead this mission. You can say that Ryoko killed me. Pheros will cooperate with you," Ge'Kahl sputtered, a trickle of light red blood flowing down his chin.  
Deevra held the trident up, preparing to strike, but halted. He retracted the blades and holstered it onto his back again. "No, sir. I consider you a fool and a stuck-up bastard, but I do not kill in cold blood even those whom I despise the most. I will follow your orders, no matter how much I detest you. You proved capable enough to hold up in combat with me for more than ten minutes. You have earned some respect from me even if you have not earned my pride," he said.  
"Why have you given up? You had me beat," Ge'Kahl asked.  
"Because I am an honorable man. My superiors have decided to send you, thus so, I must stay my anger. You are my superior officer on this mission. Despite the fact that you are not superior to me in any other way. I will follow whatever you say, no matter how it angers and outrages me."  
"You are a very strange man, Commander. Even for an Illnian," Ge'Kahl said, wiping the blood from his mouth as he spoke.  
"Thank you," Deevra replied.  
  
Chapter Seven: Who leads whom?!  
One Month, Two Weeks Ago (Moments have passed)  
Clay sat down on a floating anti-graviton cushion placed before the main computer of his new ship, the "Goddess Tokimi". He stretched his bulky body, cracked his knuckles and then set to work on his assignment. He reached toward the controls and typed at an astonishingly fast pace along the keyboard for a man with such stubby fingers. As he typed, he spoke aloud various instructions. "Activate main reactor. Generate shrapnel field. Disconnect the umbilical cables. Activate the docking thrusters and prepare for departure." For each command he spoke aloud, a computerized female voice responded with an "Affirmative".   
  
After the last commands were finished, a screen appeared directly before Clay, displaying the docked portion of the ship. Two silver spheres rose up, placing themselves beneath his hands. He placed his palms on the spheres, which lit up with energy, and he moved them slowly forward, causing the ship to move forward.  
  
Outside, the magnificent, organic-looking star-ship known as the "Goddess Tokimi" disconnected from its perch at the "docks" of Tokimi's Dimensional Fortress. It drifted away from the way station, which mysteriously vanished from sight. Moments later, the ship's long, rounded supra-light drives activated, shooting forward into the bluish void of sub-space. A moment after the ship took off, a beam of bright green energy taking the shape of a person, zapped, like a flash of light, after the ship.  
  
Inside, Clay relaxed on his cushioned seat, enjoying the quiet of the ship. His mood was so blissful that it was not even interrupted by a bodiless voice as it informed him, "We have entered Supra-light speed, Dr. Clay." Its soft feminine voice surrounded the old scientist, comforting him even more than before.  
"Thank you, Belldra," Clay replied, taking a sip of the strange yellow-green liquid contained within an antique silver goblet. "How long until we reach normal space-time?" he asked, his voice calm and relaxed from the atmosphere of his new ship. He had it designed to be very home-like, filled with antiques, statues and furniture of every conceivable modern and ancient style.  
"It will take approximately three days if we remain at our current velocity of nine-times light speed," the voice responded complacently.  
"Very good. No need to rush," the Doctor said, draining the goblet. He studied the cup for a moment, as if pondering the universe, and then spoke, "Algorthian wine please, my dear servant," he asked, extending a stubby arm to receive his request.  
"Get it yourself, Doctor," an unknown voice spoke. The voice's body moved foreword, shoving Clay's hand away and back onto the cushion. Clay yelped in surprise, and dropped the goblet, which clattered along the smooth ebony floor of the Bridge, dripping the last remains of yellowish wine from its curved interior onto the elegant black ground.   
Clay gaped in wonder at this arrogant individual who stood before him. He stood tall and proud, wearing layered green, white and black clothing draped around his body like a cloak and tunic. His long white hair cascaded down his head and back in a sequence of random spikes. He wore a pair of ornamental glasses on his sharp nose. They were far too small for his emerald green eyes to see out of but he wore them anyway. His face was pale, like death, but smooth and unmarred, like a statue. His body radiated a chill, like indifferent death, which wrapped around Clay, making him shiver.  
"Wh, who are you?" Clay asked, confused many times over by this man. How had he gotten on the ship? Why didn't his defense fields activate? How did Clay not notice him? Why was he here? The questions rolled over and over in his ancient brain.  
"Isn't it obvious, Clay. You asked for me by name but you have never even seen me before. You didn't even know what I looked like. You based all of your ideas and plans off of half-baked stories of a man who is said to destroy entire planets. You might as well have asked Lady Tokimi for KAIN himself. At least then you would have honest information," the man spoke again, his voice low and cracked, smooth, albeit disquieting.  
"You are Kagato!?" Clay shouted in delight. "Then Tokimi wasn't lying. You are here! But how did you get... Never mind. The rest of my queries do not matter. I have set everything up for us. Now here is my plan for how to capture Washu..."  
"What are you speaking of, you fool? I am not your servant, you are mine, Doctor," the man known as Kagato replied very violently.  
"But Tokimi said..."  
"Tokimi said that you and I would discuss leadership when we meet. There is nothing to discuss. I shall lead you."  
"But this is my assignment."  
"Yes, this is. That is not of dispute since I do not work for Tokimi. Your assignment is still yours. However I shall lead you."  
"But my plan..."  
"I shall listen to your plan, Clay," Kagato hissed, "If I like it, we shall use it. If I don't, we shall not. Simplicity reigns."  
"But..."  
"Do you wish to argue with me, Clay? If so I can assure you I will not be the loser in the discussion," Kagato said, activating a sword made of pure green energy. He held the tip up to Clay as he spoke.  
"No, Master. I am yours to follow. Let me just show you something," Clay spoke hesitantly, wary of getting his throat anywhere near to the strange blade.  
"Very well, Clay. Show me this. But be warned. I am no longer a trickster and do not appreciate them as such," Kagato said, releasing his sword grip, causing the blade to vanish.   
Clay breathed a sigh of relief and jumped off of the cushion, he then walked deep into the heart of his Laboratory, through transport tubes and walkways, all the while Kagato was behind him. Finally Clay stopped in front of a strange cylinder made of glass and metal. The cylinder was connected to dozens of various tubes, wires, and other devices, which served some unknown purpose.  
"What is this, Clay?"  
"Something I tried once before. But this time I have given it no memories. She will do our bidding. I have need of your energies though, Kagato. Will you be willing to sacrifice?"  
"Sacrifice?! For what, Clay?"  
"For her, Kagato," Clay said, pressing a button on the console in front of the cylinder, "For her." The metal slid away to reveal that, beneath the glass was a young, naked girl with long blue spiked hair and strange yellow, cat-like eyes. The girl was floating in a vat of unknown liquid, no life apparent in her veins.  
Kagato's eyes widened in astonishment at the body laid out before him. He then turned from his examination, looked directly at Clay, and spoke, "Just what is this 'thing' for, Clay? What use is a duplicate of Ryoko?! It's lifeless! It doesn't even have her power!"  
"That's where you come in, my master," Clay replied.  
"How?"  
"Well, you see, this clone is merely an organic shell. It has no mind or life of its own. While its exterior has been made to look exactly like Ryoko, its interior is totally non-organic. Inside this body is a specially modified energy reactor and containment chamber. It's empty at the moment, however, I was hoping that you would be willing to use your immense power to charge it's reactor and activate this marionette."  
"Why would I do that? It still has no mind, it would have no idea where Washu is. What is its purpose?"  
"Why, a lure. I plan to use this clone as an instrument of destruction. It will go around destroying random Galaxy Police ships and space stations. The Assembly's Council of Seven will then put out a warrant on Ryoko's head."  
"We want Washu, not Ryoko. This serves no purpose, Clay," Kagato began angrily, clenching and unclenching his fists. A ball of green light appeared in front of the tall man and he swiftly reached to-ward it with a gloved hand.  
"But, wait, Master," Clay pleaded, dropping to his knees before the green madman.  
"What is it now?" Kagato asked, pulling his hand away from the sphere. "Speak! Or be gone with you!"  
"It does serve a purpose, Master," Clay started, "While the Galaxy Police are busy with Ryoko, we can sneak into Washu's Laboratory and catch her!"  
Kagato paused for a moment, his mouth twisting from a haggard frown into an evil grin. "I suppose this will work, Clay. But we do it my way. I would like to damage the Galaxy Police badly. I know some specific targets that will confuse them even more and keep them out of our way.  
Then just as suddenly, he laughed, a shrill evil laugh. Dr. Clay laughed along with him.   
[The plan would be put into play,] Clay thought. [It would be put to play, and then, Washu and her friends would pay for all that they have done to me!]  
  
Chapter Eight: Love/Hate Relationship  
Present Time  
"Well, you saved my life, big deal. What did you call me out here for?" Ryoko asked, staring at the strange red haired boy in front of her.  
"Just to talk," the boy said. "I want to get to know you, Ryoko."  
"Yeah, whatever," Ryoko said, staring at the boy with disgust. "Well, what's your name anyway?"  
"Mmmyyy nnname? Why iiit's Naotaki. Naotaki Hakubi," the boy said, obviously surprised.  
"Naotaki, huh. Well, Naotaki, you didn't have to save my life, you know. I can take care of myself just fine," Ryoko spat, her yellow eyes stared hard at Naotaki, like daggers through his soul.  
"I know. I just couldn't help myself. The moment I saw you, I felt like I had to defend you. I just couldn't bear to see beauty like yours ruined," Naotaki said, his face flushed and his hands clenched into fists as he spoke.  
"Whatever. Have you seen Tenchi anywhere? I've been trying to find him ever since that little Kiyone 'incident'."  
"No, I have not seen Master Tenchi. Why do you wish to see him now?"  
"Why? What's with you?" Ryoko asked, one eye slitted as she stared at the boy in confusion. She quickly resumed her natural, carefree demeanor and responded, "Well, if you must know, Tenchi is the love of my life!"   
"What?! Another man?! Ryoko, how could you?" the boy known as Naotaki said. His head drooped low and then shot up, tears streamed from the side of his face.  
"What do you mean, 'another man'? We've just met!" Ryoko shouted, anger and confusion running wild through her veins.  
"You can't mean that, Love. I have known you for so long now," Naotaki replied, his voice pleading.  
"You can't have known me for a long time. Washu just recently rebuilt you from a couple of cells off a dead body and grew you out of a petri dish," Ryoko stated, a vicious smirk on her face.  
"I don't know what you're talking about. I love you."  
"You're delusional. Washu must have messed with your mind. Take this!" Ryoko screamed, throwing a ball of energy that had just appeared at Naotaki. Naotaki stepped backwards, almost in fear, then he stood straight and proud. The energy ball spattered about a foot from Naotaki, spreading along a curved surface. The energy of the ball dissipated along the surface and then there was nothing again.  
"How did you do that?" Ryoko asked, bewildered.  
"I am like you now. Washu made me that way so that we could be together forever!"  
"Get away!" Ryoko screamed, lashing out at the operative. Naotaki grabbed the wrist gently and held it in the air.  
"But, my love," Naotaki started, tears streaming down his face. "I do not wish to..." he was cut off as Ryoko's left fist struck him squarely in the jaw. The force of Ryoko's assault caused his entire body to be launched from the ground, landing at least twenty meters away from her.  
Ryoko wavered, vanishing from her current position and reappearing next to Naotaki's unconscious form. "Don't give me that, 'my love' crap! I only love Tenchi!" Ryoko screamed at him, even though he was unable to hear any of it, his crumpled form dug into the ground by Ryoko's impact. "You're nothing to me! Washu reprogrammed you! You idiot!" She kicked at a chunk of dirt, launching it at the operative's face, smudging the pale face with blackened soil.   
  
A few minutes after Ryoko had left, Naotaki regained consciousness. "Ungh. Ryoko, why did you?" Naotaki said, rubbing his head as he looked around. "Ryoko?!" Naotaki jumped to his feet quickly, showing agility that a recently unconscious person should never have been able to show. "How dare you leave after initiating a mating ritual. Maybe Washu knows why she did that," he said; and vanished, as if he'd never been there.  
  
"Geeze, to think he's fallen in love with me! He threatened my life once and his egotism got him killed by KAIN! What could have possessed Washu to do this to him?" Ryoko said to herself reassuringly. "I feel sorry for him actually," she stated, flying off towards the Masaki Home and Washu's Sub-Space Lab.  
  
As Ryoko neared the house she landed quietly and phased into the door. She waited there for a while, not knowing what to do when Naotaki appeared. He walked up to the door and opened it, pulling it through Ryoko's phased body. Naotaki stood there for a moment, shocked. And then he suddenly shot out a fist at her.  
"Umph!" Ryoko shouted as she was knocked to the cold concrete porch.   
Ryoko quickly returned to her feet and charged her energy lance to strike back at the operative. Naotaki jumped back, taking a defensive position as he armed his mini gun, which he had hidden in a small bracelet on his right wrist. With a flick of the wrist it switched up, forming a strangely shaped grip. He pressed down on a recessed indentation on the grip and a burst of black energy shot from the tip. He held it straight, preparing for the attack.  
"You *are* as stupid as you look!" Ryoko shouted. "...But how did you hit me? I was phased," Ryoko wondered aloud, "What are you?"  
"Not a chance, Ryoko. Diiieee!" Naotaki shouted, his entire body shot up with adrenaline. He pounced, slashing the blade through Ryoko when an opening appeared in her defense. The blade struck home, striking across her left breast, cutting deep. When Naotaki realized what he had done he pulled the blade back, and began to weep.  
"Stop that, you idiot!" Ryoko shouted, knocking Naotaki across the side of the head. He flew to the side, striking the ground heavily. He looked up at her and his mouth dropped. The area where his blade struck had simply sealed up. The cloth, however, was still cut, the frayed nylon had been sealed to the skin in areas where the energy blade struck. The skin simply broke away and formed new flesh to replace it.  
"What happened?" Naotaki wondered aloud, not realizing he had just spoke.  
"I'm not human, you idiot!" Ryoko said, taking advantage of Naotaki's dazzlement by jabbing her own energy lance through his heart. He spat blood as he screamed from the shear pain, not of the wound, but of the plasma sealing his wounds and burning new ones through his entire circulatory system.  
Ryoko waited for a minute, and then, when the operative stopped moving, she unclenched her hand and the lance vanished. She kicked the body and Naotaki twitched, she punched him in the face and his entire jaw split off, revealing the bloodied fur-covered true-face underneath.  
Ryoko gasped. Then, as she calmed, she reached down to grab the false skin. As she gripped the very human-like substance that composed his artificial face, Naotaki reached up and grabbed her arm with his right hand. She screamed and her left hand clenched around a ball of energy that had just appeared. Her lance formed and she sliced, cleaving Naotaki's hand from his wrist.  
Naotaki stared at the bloodied stump where his hand was once linked to, the shredded skin was ripped and falling away in pieces from it, revealing that it, also, was artificial. The true fur on his wrist was brown and damp with ichor pumping from the wound that was his wrist. He made no noise, though he was still breathing. His chest moved up and down, raggedly attempted to bring in haggard, life-giving breaths.  
Ryoko looked down at the area on the Operative that she had impaled, and her eyes widened, pupils thinned, in awe of what was happening. The wound was gone. It was filled over with a huge, bloody scar that even it, was vanishing before her very eyes. The skin reformed and new fur sprouted to repair the damage. Even the blood was being drawn back into the wounds, assisting with the process of sealing and healing the damage.  
Ryoko looked at Naotaki's wrist and found that it too, was healing. New skin was forming from the flesh, sealing over the wound in a stump. She saw the artificial skin around his wrist just peal away and flake off as the furry flesh covered over it.   
There was something familiar looking about this situation... Then, it struck her. This was the exact same thing that happened to her when she was wounded that badly. The shocking revelation overwhelmed her. She was looking at herself in the mirror and what she saw scared her. So, she did what came naturally to her: she ran.  
  
A short time after Ryoko left, Tenchi, Sasami, and Ayeka returned after harvesting carrots for a very content Ryo-Ohki. When they opened the front door to the house, they stopped in their tracks in shock by the sight of Washu leaning over an unconscious young man, examining him.  
This was shocking enough, but the condition the man was in made things worse. His clothing was in tatters, and so was his skin. His face was brown and furry; looking somewhat dog-like, as were a few patches along his unconscious form and a stumped wrist was covered in it. The majority of him, however, was covered in normal looking skin. There was even a tattered bunch of flesh next to his face that was in itself another face, not to mention the severed hand lying a few meters away. This shocked the three into silence and Ayeka attempted unsuccessfully to cover her little sister's eyes.  
Tenchi was the first to recover, realizing that the man was not dead, merely unconscious. He walked right up to Washu, and somewhat angrily asked, "What are you doing now, Washu?" lifting a fist to the young scientist's form. "And who is this? Another one of your experiments?"  
Washu just straightened up, turned around to look Tenchi in the face and replied: "Why yes. I'm glad you like him. He's my newest creation. Naotaki Hakubi, the most advanced model in cloning to date," she announced, as if she was selling a new product.  
"A clone?" Ayeka asked. "Cloned from who, Mrs. Washu?"  
"Why, cloned from that Galaxy Police Operative who died during that KAIN incident on the Tokyo Tower. I've named him Naotaki," Washu cheerfully said.  
"Who?" Sasami asked in her traditionally innocent way as she fed Ryo-Ohki a carrot.   
"You never got the chance to meet him, Sasami. He was a very rude young man who got himself very badly hurt," Ayeka replied to her little sister's query.  
"Ohhh," Sasami answered meekly.  
"That doesn't matter. What does is why you did it," Tenchi angrily spoke. "It's bad enough that you create other dimensions all over the house, but now you're making people."  
"What's your point?" Washu asked.  
"What's my point?! My point is we can't afford..." Tenchi began.  
"Look! He's waking up!" Sasami pointed out. Everyone turned and stared...  
  
Chapter Nine: Baggage Trouble On the Departing Flight.  
One Week, Five Days Ago  
The entire complement of Deevra's crew had lined up on the Third Level Cargo Deck of the new Galaxy Police Star-ship, the "Joker's Wilde". This, its maiden voyage, would be the first ship of its kind to be used under any circumstances. It was the finest ship the Galaxy Police ever had made, with technological marvels they never knew possible. And it was going to be put to the test by making what would normally be an eleven-week voyage towards Earth in a period of a week and three days. All in order to capture the criminal Ryoko. Pheros, the Galaxy Police Accountant, and Ge'Kahl, the Jurai Ambassador, stood proudly behind the Commander.  
"Has the entire crew been transported to the ship yet? This doesn't look like a full crew compliment for a ship of this size. Very inefficient if you ask me," Pheros noted, tapping at a simplistic computer pad.  
"Yes, everything is in perfect preparation," Ge'Kahl responded coldly.  
Deevra shot his arm straight out to the side, knocking the two Observers backward. "I will worry about the preparations, Gentlemen. You two will stay confined to your quarters until well after the ship has launched from port and into Hyperspace," Deevra announced to his two shocked associates.  
"You can't mean to tell us that we are confined to quarters..." Pheros started, screaming, although the pitch never got high enough to make a true effect.   
"That is exactly what I mean. And don't tell me what I can't do. You two are merely Observers on this assignment," Deevra stated coldly.  
You, arrogant, presumptuous little pain in the..." Pheros started, his face turning bright red with anger. Ge'Kahl grabbed the accountant by the shoulders and brought him down to the chair, forcibly. Pheros groaned and turned his head to look at Ge'Kahl.  
"Do not get angry at the Commander, Pheros my friend. Deevra knows perfectly well what he is doing and why he does it. I respect that man, he is very intelligent and skillful," Ge'Kahl noted, attempting to calm the accountant.  
"You learn quickly, Admiral," Deevra coldly noted to Ge'Kahl.  
"I am merely an Ambassador on this mission, nothing more," Ge'Kahl responded plainly, bowing before Deevra, releasing Pheros.  
"Yet nothing less. An ambassadorial position is one of great power."  
"No more then that of being the Commander of a star-ship. Especially one like this, this... What is it called?"  
"The 'Joker's Wilde', and it is a lofty position, yes. But no more than many others I know, yourself included."  
"Are you two finished boosting each other's egos yet?" Pheros asked, glaring at the two with annoyance in his voice.  
"Yes. Very much so," Deevra replied calmly. "Let's see the troops. All officers line up in three equal lines! Prepare for inspection!" he shouted, then turned to Pheros and calmly said, "Ready to inspect, Mr. Accountant?"   
"Yes. And I am not an accountant!" Pheros shouted. Many of the officers in the audience couldn't help but laugh at this man having been reduced to childish measures.  
"What is your name, Lieutenant?" Deevra asked one of the officers as he passed through the rows of soldiers and crewman, examining them carefully.  
"Arik Vashier, Sir!" the Lieutenant responded, snapping his hand to his forehead in salute.  
"What is your assignment on this mission, Lieutenant Arik?" Deevra asked, his face stiff and drained of even more humor than normal.  
"Ground Assault Drop Trooper and 'Hostile Atmosphere' combat unit maintenance officer, Sir," the boy said, a worried expression on his face and sweat dripping from his brow.  
"Oh, That's too bad... Oh, never mind," Deevra said calmly.  
"What's too bad, sir?" Arik asked curiously.  
"Oh, its nothing... Well, actually it's... You see Arik, I have to apologize, to you. We just have too many maintenance officers and there just aren't enough 'Officer' Class Drop Suits to include you," Deevra said, his face almost a scowl.  
"But, sir..." the boy started, sweat dripping from his nervous forehead. "I enjoy this assignment. I'd do anything you need, sir. Drop me two ranks, take away my armor license, make me clean the methane bathrooms, just don't drop me from this assignment!"  
"I'm sorry, there just aren't enough armored units for everybody at this rank. Therefore..." Deevra mused aloud.  
At that point, Arik just collapsed, his mind shattered by the weight of what he thought was coming. Pheros gasped in shock and Ge'Kahl was turning red with anger when Deevra spoke again: "Tsk. And I was just going to promote him to Executive Officer."  
"Sir?" one of the officers next to Arik's unconscious form said in a contorted and electronic form of Standard, it's bulbous head bounding along its long, tentacular body, which was flexed to full length. A Qujinn symbol of confusion.  
"Is something wrong..." Deevra paused as he examined the officer's only noticeable clothing, the Galaxy Police triangular rank insignia denoting him as a Private in the Drop Trooper Army, then spoke again, "Private?"  
"Ju'Dosk, sir," the creature responded, the voice coming from its triangular badge. "I was wondering why you did that. It was rude."  
"I was only having a little fun with the Lieutenant. I didn't mean to cause a nervous breakdown. Very well, Ju'Dosk, please escort Arik to his quarters and break the news to him gently about the promotion," Deevra said, a shocked look on his face.  
The Qujinn did so, grasping Arik's legs carefully with two of its powerful pinchers while a Trillium Flight Officer grasped his shoulders in their massive hands and carried him out of the room. Many of the officers just stared at Deevra, unsure of what to do next.  
"That's it..." Deevra mumbled to himself. He turned and looked at the two observers, gave a slight smile then turned back to the massed crew. "Everyone, dismissed! I want all of you at your stations right now, Alpha Shift! We are heading out, people!" he shouted. The crew scrambled about, rushing to their respective stations.  
Deevra turned back to his associates, who stared at him with grim outlooks. "What?" He asked, unsure of what was going on in their minds.  
"That was the most disrespectful act of depravity I have ever seen. What kind of a Commander are you, playing pranks on innocents like that?" Ge'Kahl demanded, his face turning bright red with anger.  
"On top of that, you nearly caused that 'creature' to have a heart attack," Pheros added, his face equally reddened.  
"Yeah, but it was fun. Do you have any other problems with my way of doing things?" Deevra asked, a hint of sarcasm in his voice.  
"As a matter of fact..." Ge'Kahl started, being interrupted by the Financial Advisor.  
"...I do," Pheros finished Ge'kahl's statement, "I want to know why you are letting a Gelsh take the number two position. Are you insane?!"  
"No, I don't think so. Do you have a problem with the Gelsh, Mr. Accountant?" Deevra asked, frowning slightly.  
"Yes, as a matter of fact I do. Gelsh are notorious for being thieves and saboteurs. The fact that you just entrusted one to the Command Staff proves just how careless of a Commander you are," Pheros stated, his voice brimming with anger and annoyance.  
"What do you mean? I've never heard of anything like that before, Pheros," Ge'Kahl asked, his face changing from annoyance to confusion.  
"I don't care what you have or haven't heard of, Ambassador," Pheros stated, spitting out the words at his associate. "I know what I'm saying when I tell you that creature is dangerous to our mission."  
"Dangerous? No more dangerous then a Krixxin, or a Vlee," Deevra mused, thinking over what Pheros just stated. Then a thought struck him, "I get it now! You're the PsLk on this assignment, aren't you?"  
"What?!" Pheros shouted, his face turning even more red. "No! Of course not! I'm a normal, unchanged Terran!" he continued to scream, sweat dripping across his forehead.  
"A Ps-what?" Ge'Kahl asked confusedly.  
"A PsLk. Psionic Link. The Assembly has no other name for them. PsLks are a race of creature about a couple inches across and made out of a gelatinous substance. They are a telepathic race that psychically and physically bond to other life forms as a form of parasite. Upon linkage, the original personality is placed in storage and a PsLk personality takes their place. The Galactic Assembly uses PsLks as political heads, trade negotiators, and spies. They're completely loyal to the Assembly and make all the political decisions for them," Deevra explained, staring at Pheros accusingly.  
"But what does that have to do with us? We're on a combat mission, there's nothing political about any of this. Why would they send a PsLk?"  
"I was betting that the Council wouldn't let us go without one. I'm considered too much of a loose cannon for them to be sent anywhere without a PsLk. They even kidnapped my last partner and planted one on him before they sent us out on our assignment. He died because the PsLk drained from him what made him so valuable in the first place, his ingenuity," Deevra calmly stated, his eyes just cool slits of black as he stared at Pheros.  
"But what does this have to do with..."  
"With that Gelsh, Arik? Gelsh are the only known humanoid creatures who can not only resist the link but detect their presence. They become, dizzy, can't think straight, and then pass out. It doesn't happen automatically but the longer a Gelsh is in the proximity of a PsLk, the more chances one has of detecting them. This scares the PsLk, because they can't stay covert near a Gelsh. Therefore, PsLk always have a distrust of the Gelsh and try to keep them as low on the chain of command as possible for so-called security reasons."  
"That's barbaric. How could the Assembly do something like that to their own people? I thought your leaders were a moral group," Ge'Kahl asked.  
"Simple, the Assembly heads are PsLks. Their cold logic is what controls the majority of the Assembly. But still, it's not as bad as say... committing genocide on the Illnians like the Jurai did." Deevra said, smirking as he spoke.  
"What are you talking about? The Jurai did the universe a favor when they annihilated the Illnians! They truly were a barbaric and bloodthirsty race! They deserved what they got!" Ge'Kahl shouted.  
"Oh, I see. They deserved to be driven to the brink of extinction by the Jurai, and then finished off by Ryoko. That makes so much more sense," Deevra quipped, his mouth stretched in a thin smirk.  
"Damn you, Deevra," Ge'Kahl said under his breath.  
"Well I guess I'll see you two later. A lot later," Deevra laughed as he walked off, leaving two very angry men in his wake.  
  
A few minutes later, the Commander arrived in the Medical Laboratory. He stood outside the doorway for a moment to calm himself, then quickly strode through the entryway.  
The interior of the MedLab was clean, white and sterile. It was filled with all sorts of diagnostic equipment and surgical instruments, forming a sort of maze out of the area. Deevra slowly wormed his way past the maze of equipment until he found a dark, secluded corner of the lab that contained the Chief Medical Officer.  
Upon first glance, Deevra couldn't tell very much about the doctor's looks. The man was slumped over a table upon which only a small lamp stood to illuminate him. The light only allowed the right half of his face to be seen, and that was mostly covered with a surgical mask. His right hand and arm looked smooth, unmarred and small. The left hand and arm, however, looked larger and bulky, even though it was barely a shadow under the light. Deevra supposed the doctor was using some sort of exo-skellatal appendage to work small, complex operations that a Terran hand couldn't do.  
"Well, it seems the Assembly cut back on lighting in here," Deevra said in an attempted joke. "Guess they always want to cut back on the budget, don't they?"  
The doctor barely reacted. Without turning his head, he replied, "I wouldn't know about such things. That's not my job here." The man's voice was somehow both smooth and rough.  
"Well, excuse me for having a sense of humor," Deevra quipped back.  
"Hmmm, sounds serious, I think we can have it removed though," the man once again calmly replied.  
"Well, it appears not everyone in my crew is soulless," the Commander noted. "Hello, I'm Commander..."  
"Deevra Murishawa, acting Captain of the Joker's Wilde, Hello. I'm Chief Medical Officer Mahtoma Tresh." the doctor said, "Sorry if I don't shake your hand but I'm doing some very important research right now."  
"Don't worry about it. No one here has respect for their superiors anyway. Especially me. I don't even respect myself," Deevra quipped.  
"What's superior about you? I've read your record. You have a bit of a problem taking orders, don't you?"  
"Only when the orders come from a pain-in-the-ass bureaucrat who doesn't know a Plasma Rifle from his ass."  
"Oh... Definitely a problem with taking orders, then. Just a moment..." Mahtoma paused, adjusted a strange-looking instrument, and then continued, "There, finished." He stood up and walked wholly into the light.  
Deevra was shocked at the sight before him. Mahtoma Tresh was a horribly mutated man. While the right side of his body looked normal, the left side showed a grotesque vine-like formation that had re-placed his skin. His entire left arm was composed of this plant-like material, making it larger and more rough-hewn then the other. Tresh reached out with his right hand and Deevra reflexively grabbed it, shaking it vigorously.  
After a moment, Tresh pulled his hand back and placed it in his lab coat. "I see. You think I'm hideous too," he said flatly.  
"I didn't mean that! It's just... I've never seen someone like you before. That's all," Deevra said defensively.  
"Not surprising. The Prev are a relatively new race. This..." Tresh held up his left hand, "...is just our distinguishing characteristic; an infectious plant virus. It would've taken over our entire bodies had our scientists not found a way to hold off the infection. However, every new generation has this, and it keeps getting worse. It's intelligent, too. It tries to talk to me telepathically whenever I'm alone. It's like a curse."  
"I see. I'm very sorry for interrupting your work. I just wanted to meet the man that I'm putting my life in the care of," the Commander said, pausing, "By the way, what are you working on?"  
"A cure," Tresh replied.  
"A cure for what?"  
"A cure for my people; to cure them of this freakish disease," Tresh replied sorrowfully. "Do you realize how hard it is to talk to a person when they keep staring at your arm or your eye? How it feels to have half of your body rebel against you, to hurt you every time you move a finger? To try to stay sane when it speaks to you within your own mind?"  
"No, I don't. I'm sorry," Deevra said, he turned back toward the maze in shame. "I'll go now," and he walked away.  
"Thank you. I'll see you at the first meeting," Tresh said.  
  
After visiting the MedLab, Commander Deevra Murishawa decided to head straight for the Bridge. Once there, he sat down in his Command seat and surveyed the area. After a moment of reflection, he looked at the Pilot and Co-Pilot and spoke, "Well, Officer Nesh'Rk, can we expect smooth sailing on this mission?"  
The man who responded was a calm, determined Korvian. Deevra noticed the man's fur was a dark brown blend all across the visible portions of his well-built body. He responded with a rich, baritone voice trademark of the Korvians, "Of course, Sir. This is the finest ship off the lot. The newest model of star-ships from the Assembly. We have brand-new, specially modified Star Drives, brand-new weaponry, and a semi-organic, self-repairable hull! The best there is!" the man replied, his voice and face brimming with pride.  
"Ah, good. Now, who is the Co-pilot?" Ge'Kahl asked, pointing at the non-descript looking man sitting next to Nesh'Rk.  
"I am Vol, sir," the man replied, his voice a dull monotone.  
"Um, he's a Synth, Sir. I mean synthetic Terran. He's been designed to fully integrate with the on-board computer and use it with complete efficiency through telepathic relays," Nesh'Rk quickly said. "He's the best Co-Pilot a guy could ask for. He's really got a great personality too."  
"Great, a PsLk accountant, a half-plant doctor, and an organic robot for a pilot. What else could go wrong?" Deevra said aloud.  
"How about a chaotic wormhole that warps time and space appearing in this sector, Commander?" Vol suggested.  
"Make that a comedic organic robot for a pilot," Deevra said, smacking his hand to his forehead.  
"Thank you, sir. I do my best," Vol replied, smirking evilly at his partner.  
"This is gonna be a looong trip," Deevra complained.  
  
The Joker's Wilde was not a normal, rounded ship like the majority of the Assembly's fleet. Instead, the ship was large and blocky, with various antenna, dishes and cannons lining the hull in an intricate pattern. To the rear of the craft, seven large, cylindrical engines placed closely together provided the lesser thrust of the craft. To the front of the ship, two large pylons stuck out from the sides of the craft, aimed at the large void of space like two fingers pointed accusingly at the cosmos.  
  
"Everyone's on-board and we have the clearance to depart, Commander," the Communications Officer Quilnk said, its long tentacular eyes swerving backwards to see Deevra.  
"Good. Unlock the couplings and take us out, Officer Nesh'Rk," Deevra replied excitedly, his hands clenching the armrests of his seat.  
"Aye, aye, sir," Nesh'Rk replied, flicking switches and adjusting controls as he activated the ship's thrusters.  
  
Outside, the ominous twisted metal form of the Galaxy Police Space Station Nerik released the Joker's Wilde from its grasp. Large metal tubes and massive locking pylons retracted into its surface, freeing the captive vessel.  
The Joker's Wilde floated freely for a moment, then blasted forward as its engine cluster powered up, shooting red-blue flames. It shot far away from the space station, its fiery engines tirelessly streaming power, until it reached a point distant enough from the station.  
  
"We have reached maximum distance, sir," Nesh'Rk announced.  
"Very nice, Officers. Activate the Jump Gate engines. Let's see what this hunk of scrap metal can do," Deevra replied, his eyes wide with amazement. To the Commander, no matter how many times he had witnessed a Hyper-spatial jump, it never lost the intrigue. The idea of making 'jumps' through another space and time to get places was so amazing he still never quite believed it.  
  
The pylons pointing forward from the ship started sparking as energy coursed through them. The pylons continued to spark until they were completely energized. Then the beams converged, creating a line of sparks between them. The sparks clustered together, forming a ball of energy, which shot out in front of them at the void of space.  
The space before the ship warped, and twisted like a whirlpool, then it opened, revealing a gaping hole of energized space. The pylons powered down, the energy drained from them. The Joker's Wilde then sped forward into the sparking blue portal, vanishing amidst the chaotic field. A moment later, that section of space returned to normal, leaving nothing but the space station, the planet it orbited, and a vast field of stars.  
  
Chapter Ten: Giving Life to the Unliving  
One Month, Three Days Ago  
The powerful, driven, and dark-minded man known as Kagato was in a very compromising situation. His clothing had been stripped from him, revealing that no body lay beneath. Instead, patches of jagged lined flesh lay randomly across an empty field with mass, substance, but no image. Across his strange nullish body were various tubes, wires and electronic components. Despite this, his face remained calm and uninterested.  
"Just a moment, now, Master," Clay said, chuckling with delight at his own insane humor. He reached down into a pile of wires and junk with his blunt-edged fingers and picked up a strange looking pair of bracelets. "These are the last devices I need, sir."  
"Good," Kagato stated vilely. "I become disinterested in this, Clay."  
"I'm so, sorry, Master Kagato. This is really the last thing," Clay said worriedly, beads of sweat dripping down his forehead while he struggled to reach Kagato's neck. Kagato sighed with regret and knelt down, bringing his almost formless neck to Clay's level. Clay unlocked the bolts on one of the bracelets and placed the strange contraption around Kagato's neck. The bracelet locked into place, injecting more than a dozen needles into the man's neck. Kagato just remained still, not reacting in any way to what should have been painful.  
After placing the device on Kagato, Clay wobbled over to the nude body of Ryoko's duplicate lying on an operating table. He started plugging tubes and wires into various entry plugs all over her body. Once he finished with the last, he placed the bracelet around the girl's slender neck as well, which inserted large computer plugs into ports in her neck, instead of the series of needles.  
Making a few last adjustments, Clay stepped back, away from the two. Reaching a safe distance, he reached a hand into his robe and retrieved a small black rectangular object from within. He carefully and slowly pressed the button... Then, everything went white.  
  
As the device attached to Kagato and the Ryoko clone activated, black energy started siphoning out of him and quickly flowed into her. Kagato screamed at the massive jolt of pain, his body lighting up with so much energy the heat reflection alone melted portions of the room.  
Clay quickly ran for his lab's exit as the energy and light became so powerful it threatened to destroy the room. Just as Clay made it past the door, the energy reached its peak, bursting out with enough energy to annihilate everything around Kagato.  
After a few moments of this, however, the energy levels lowered, and died. When this happened, Kagato's half-existing body slumped to the ground, totally exhausted of power.  
  
Dr. Clay quietly reentered the rubble that was once his lab. He sifted through what little remained and eventually came across the strangely formed man, coughing and wheezing, his hands clutching at his throat. Clay walked up to the destructive force and helped him to his feet. His smile was wide and cheerful, yet betrayed the urge for something, something he should never do around Kagato.  
"Did it work, Master?" Clay asked nervously, holding out a green-tinted robe for Kagato to wear.  
"I suppose it did, doctor," Kagato sneered. "This had better be worth my energies or you will recharge me with your life-force."  
"I understand, Master Kagato," Clay said, bending down on his bulky knees in order to properly bow down before the dark man.  
  
Unbeknownst to either scientist at that time, the Ryoko clone was still alive. It shifted its body, causing large pieces of metal and concrete to be scattered across the ruined floor. Clay jumped up, off of his knees and ran over to the duplicate.  
Her magnificent body was still unclothed, however, dirt, blood and oil covered her skin. A piece of metal had fallen from the ceiling, cleaving a portion of flesh out of one of her breasts, revealing that, beneath the bloody skin, instead of organics, a collection of tubes, machinery and wires composed her interior.  
"My creation!" Clay screamed in dismay. "She's so damaged!" He scrambled toward the clone in horror just as a piece of shattered concrete landed atop her right arm. Sparks flew and blood spattered across the floor. With little effort, the duplicate pulled her arm away from the concrete, ripping the skin and metal apart, leaving the majority of it underneath. She stared at her severed limb for a moment, the gushing blood, the sparking wires, and the bent and shattered metal, with intense interest. She stared at it, and anything else her eyes came across, like an innocent child.  
"It appears that you have done a superb job on her, Clay. She bleeds magnificently," Kagato stated with a sneer, walking up behind the dumpy scientist.  
"It's nothing permanent," Clay protested, trying to staunch the clone's bleeding with an old rag. "Ryoko will be fine."  
"R...yo...ko?" the clone asked, still staring at her arm.  
Clay's face shot up, his eyes wide and mouth agape. "S... she's not supposed to talk. She doesn't have a brain!" he yelled.  
"You created her, Dr. Clay. You should know what it can and cannot do," Kagato stated calmly.  
"I... ta... lk," the clone stuttered. It lowered the shredded limb and turned its head to stare at the two men with the same innocence as before.  
"No, you don't. Something's wrong with you. Now shut up and hold still," Clay angrily told the clone, reaching toward her left ear. He gripped it and pulled on the lobe, causing the entire organ to come off. Beneath lay a complex assembly of circuitry and metal.   
Clay studied the duplicate's inner-workings carefully, running his finger along some wiring, looking for defects or damage. Satisfied, he pulled his hand back and sat down on a ruined piece of machinery. "Good, the positronic cortex isn't damaged," he mumbled to himself. He reached into his robe and removed a rectangular box with one long cord extending from it. He placed the box on a large piece of debris, then opened the lid on it, revealing an advanced computerized system. He placed the plug-shaped end of the cord into a slot in the clone's exposed wiring and began typing on the computer.  
"Well, Clay," Kagato said with obvious distaste, "Is it still useful to us?"  
"I'm checking that now, Master," Clay replied with obvious worry. The computer readouts did not look good to him. "It appears that it has duplicated some of your intellect when it gained your power. It has your mind. That's why it can speak!"  
"Will this be a problem? Can it still do what you said it can?"  
"I do believe so. However, we will have to modify the plan because of it."  
"Modify it. How?"  
"We will have to be in the vicinity of her whenever she carries out an assignment. About a light-years distance. That way we can keep control of her. If she strays too far from us, her neural control net will shut down and her simplistic brain will shunt to your mindset for commands. Who knows what she'd do then," Clay pointed out worriedly.  
"I can take a guess as to that, Clay," Kagato answered enigmatically. "My thoughts are focused on objectives far greater than your mind could hope to comprehend."  
Clay turned and stared at Kagato strangely, "What do you mean? Is there something you are not telling me, Master?" he asked bewilderingly.  
"You prove my point in ways far more eloquent than I could ever try," Kagato replied cryptically, green-tinted energy surging in smoky waves from his eyes as he stared hatefully at the blocky little scientist.  
Clay looked at the madman with fear in his eyes. "But Master, I wasn't trying to pry. I was only curious. I didn't mean..." he babbled.  
"You never, 'mean' do you Clay?" Kagato said venomously. "Now, how will the proximity affect our plans?"  
"Well, you see, Master, because of the proximity we have to keep, we will be in range of standard Galaxy Police sensors. We have to be careful or we will be caught."  
"That does not worry me, Clay. Being seen is the problem, not the Galaxy Police. They are but pests to be swatted down."  
"I see, Master. Well, I need to..." Clay began again, only to be interrupted by Kagato.  
"Enough. I must take leave of you and your excuses for now. Even my vast reserves can be exhausted. I must rest for now," Kagato said as he turned around and elegantly walked out of the rubble-filled room.  
  
Clay just stared after the strange man, a worried look on his bearded face. [Perhaps I should not have asked Lady Tokimi for his help. He is insane!]  
The Ryoko clone was not oblivious to the situation, however. She looked at Clay with worry in her eyes. "Pr... Problem?" she asked, the innocent tone of her query with Ryoko's voice sounding increasingly strange to him.  
"That's none of your concern!" Clay replied without even looking back. "Now shut yourself down. I need to repair your arm and body. Then I have a task for you to fulfill before you are to carry out our assignment..."  
"Y... yes, sir," the clone said. She looked down, her body quivered for a moment, and then slumped to the rubble-coated ground. Once that happened, Clay began the time-consuming job of repairing the semi-living mannequin.  
  
Kagato walked into the quarters devised for him by Clay. He sneered with anger at the primitive decor the old man chose to furnish the ship with. But that was not of major importance to him. He shucked off his green robe and walked to the center of the room, which was covered with an intricately designed carpeted rug.  
Kagato knelt down and lifted the rug covering the floor. Beneath the rug lay a large red crystal, imbedded in the sturdy ground. Kagato pressed a hand to the crystal and it began to glow with a powerful aura.  
The aura brightened, and an image of D3, Lady Tokimi's Herald Controller appeared. Kagato bowed before the image and spoke, "Lady Tokimi was correct, Lord D3. Clay's idea has no merit and lacks a stable foundation."  
"As I knew it would be," D3 responded in his normal unemotional tone.  
"I do not understand, however, why Lady Tokimi wishes to continue this farce. Clay is useless to her," Kagato noted.  
"Lady Tokimi has her reasons for her actions. I expect you to not contradict her choices again in the future. Remember, she created you with a thought. She can destroy you just as easily," D3 said, obviously angry despite no change in his intonation.  
"I understand, my Lord," Kagato replied. "What are my current orders? I am afraid I am not capable of much. I have been greatly sapped by Clay's experiment."  
"Continue as planned. When you reach Earth, go straight for Washu. We do not wish for a repeat of the last incident. Until then, monitor Clay and stay at low power status whenever possible. It will take some time before you completely regenerate."  
"Yes, my Lord," Kagato said obediently. With a crackle of energy, the bodiless image of D3 faded away, leaving Kagato alone.  
The man known as a destroyer of relics mused with worry and suspicion. Despite his falsity, he contained many of the original's mentality. His loyalty to Tokimi, however, took precedence. He returned the rug to its original position and stood straight up, continuing in that position, without moving, for a very long time...  
  
Chapter Eleven: Heavy-handed Approach  
Present Time  
Naotaki Hakubi awakened from his long period of unconsciousness. He quickly searched around him, trying to discover his whereabouts and found himself to be in a large house, with a small group of people, three young women and a teenage boy, who were looking at him with worry and fear.   
He jumped to his feet and shielded his face with his hands. Then he realized that he only had one hand. The other hand was missing, in its place was a stump of flesh covered by thick brown fur. That also caught him by surprise. Underneath the skin he thought was natural was a layer of thick fur.  
Naotaki began screaming out loud, gripping the remnant of his arm with his remaining hand. He fell to the ground, barely standing on his knees as he looked at it.  
"Are you okay, Mr..." the voice was obviously from the male. Naotaki looked up, his eyes streaming with tears, and saw that the boy was offering to help him up.  
"No!!!" Naotaki screamed, pulling away from the boy. "Look at me! I've lost... I've lost... Everything..." he sobbed as he ran from the group.  
  
"Well. That could've gone better," Washu noted. She immediately activated her computer and started processing the new information.  
Tenchi turned back to look at Washu. "What did you do to him?" he asked.  
"Well, I had to make some adjustments to the Naotaki clone. You see, there just wasn't enough DNA left from him to accurately create a duplicate... So, I used some of Ryoko's to fill in the gaps. His genetic structure is now an inter-mixture of the Operative Naotaki and Ryoko," Washu replied without stopping her typing. "This also accounts for his failure to assimilate the recognition memories I gave him."  
"Huh?!" the entire group said at once.  
Washu sagged her head in frustration then turned away from her computer to face the group. "Naotaki and Ryoko have the same powers now. He also has an unimaginable attraction to her whenever he sees her. Not only that but he has no memories. He doesn't know us from the implanted information I gave him."  
"Why did you do that, Washu?" Ayeka asked, her eyes widened in shock.  
"To see what would happen if I did. It's such complex information. I have to do more research," Washu replied with an evil smirk.  
"Oh, I should have known," Tenchi replied with a groan, a sweat drop forming on his forehead.  
"But what about Mister Naotaki?" Sasami asked with childish worry.  
"He'll be back soon. He's got an organic program to come directly to me whenever there's a problem or something he doesn't understand," the scientist answered, putting a hand on top of Sasami's head. "Don't worry. We'll make him all better soon."  
  
Naotaki ran as far away from the Masaki home as he could. However, after a few miles and night's shadows falling over everything, he felt the urge to return. The urge to be comfortable and safe again within the confines of the house.   
Fighting the urge, he sat down next to a tree, trying to assimilate everything that had happened to him recently. [Everything's a blur,] he thought. [None of this makes sense. Who are those people? Why did I react to Ryoko like that? Who is Ryoko? For that matter, who am I?]   
He raised his furry stump up to eye level, examining the flesh with worry and anguish. "You tell me so much," he told the damaged limb. [Yet you give me as many questions,] his mind replied. [Why do I have normal skin like the others, and yet am covered with fur? What's going to happen to me now?] he sighed dejectedly. [Better questions to be worried about in the morning,] he decided, and slumped against the tree for comfort. He tried to sleep, repeating the same statement to himself in his mind, [I wish I had my hand back.] And when he finally fell asleep, he dreamt of death and violence.  
Then the rain came...  
  
Sasami stared out the window of her room at the heavily pouring rain, with worry. She was afraid, as she often was, for another. She worried about the newest guest to the home, Mr. Naotaki. He had run off and she didn't know if he had found shelter before the rain came.  
He was very different from the others at the house, she felt. He was so physically strong and at the same time, so spiritually weak. He didn't hide his feelings like she knew the others did. Why was this? Mrs. Washu said that he was a clone of another person. Sasami didn't know anything about that. She didn't even know what a clone was. She didn't care. He was a guest and she would try to take care of him.  
She sighed and turned to look at the sleeping Ryoko, who was snoring heavily as she sprawled out on the downstairs' couch. Mrs. Washu said Mr. Naotaki and Ryoko were a lot alike. Well, she liked Ryoko, so she felt she would like Naotaki too.  
"Ryoko?" Sasami asked the sleeping women meekly.  
Ryoko immediately awoke, and pivoted her body to see Sasami. "What is it?" she asked, annoyed by the interruption.  
"Ryoko, could you..." Sasami began, only to be interrupted by the Space Pirate.  
"I told you before, I can't stop the rain. They can't do that here," Ryoko shot back. "Now let me sleep."  
"But, Ryoko. That's not what I was going to ask you," Sasami replied, pouting.  
"Oh," Ryoko mused. "Then what?"  
"Could you please look for Mister Naotaki?"  
"What!" Ryoko shouted, jumping up off the couch with a start.  
"Please..." Sasami begged, tears forming in the corner of her eyes.  
"Oh, okay. But I'm not promising anything," Ryoko said with defeat. She then floated up and out of the house, her body phasing through the ceiling, and out into the rain.  
[I know you'll find him, Ryoko,] Sasami thought to herself as she watched Ryoko leave. [I know you will.]  
  
Naotaki awoke the next morning to the sound of water splashing across the ground in heavy torrents. He opened his eyes slowly, only to be greeted by a splash of droplets across his face. He reached out with his hands to protect himself from the watery assault, and backed up, trying to get as much under the cover of the tree as he could.  
[What is this wet stuff?] he thought to himself. He reached out with his hands cupped together, trying to catch some of the water. This shocked him. He had two hands again. He pulled his hands back and looked them over.  
The right hand was whole again. But something was strange. After discovering his true form, he figured his hand would be fur-coated, just like the wrist. But it wasn't. The artificial skin he wore was still attached up to an inch below the wrist. Then, it split away, revealing the thick brown fur. However, at a point just above the wrist, the flesh became less and less covered with fur. He reached out to touch his right wrist with his left hand and tried to pull at the skin. It wouldn't peel away. He tried harder, scratching at the flesh with his nails, and only felt pain as he drew a trickle of blood. He held up the droplet of blood to his face and examined it carefully. It looked like normal blood, but...  
"Aaachooo," his train of thought interrupted as he sneezed. [This wetness is starting to affect my circulatory system...] he thought. [Wait... I know what this is. It's rain!] he smiled inwardly at his knowledge but this quickly faded.  
He frowned again, his mind racing with confusion. [How can I know what rain is but not know my own name?] he thought. This whole situation confused him. Ryoko, the fur, his hand, the rain... It was all so strange and new, but somehow, he felt like he belonged. [Maybe Washu can help me with all this...] and he stopped in mid-thought. He had never even heard the name Washu until he just thought of it. [This is getting aggravating... But I suppose there's nothing I can do until the rain stops...] he mused. He curled up beneath the tree's cover and waited...  
  
Ryoko hated the rain. It was so cold and wet, and always made her feel lonely. However, she hated to see Sasami upset even more. So there she was, out in the pouring rain trying to find someone she would rather not ever see again. The drenching barrage of liquid was almost unbearable, but she knew she wouldn't get any rest until she found the idiotic operative.  
A burst of fire from the dense forest below her broke her concentration and made her curious. A second blast, this one closer to hitting her, made her mad. She powered up her spheres and launched a return assault rivaling an atomic blast. Trees were mercilessly destroyed in all directions for over a mile, and the ground beneath was just smoldering dried out dirt. Even the rain was superheated, becoming smoke the moment it dropped too close.  
Somehow, this didn't stop the attacker. Another shot launched at her from within the burning field. Ryoko barely dodged it and decided to go in for a closer look. Her image wavered, became jagged, and vanished in her traditional teleporting method.   
She reappeared on the destroyed ground, her shoes beginning to melt at the mere touch. She searched around calmly, thankful to be out of the rain. Another shot clipped across her shoulder, ripping her clothing and burning her skin. This time, however, the attacker was visible. It was that operative, come back from the dead... again.  
"Damn it!" she shouted, hefting her energy sword. "Why wont you just stay dead?!"  
"I can't die," was all he said.  
"I don't think so. Take this!" and Ryoko heaved her sword at the operative's head.  
The blade shattered into sparks of energy just as it neared Naotaki's head. Although unwounded, the light was bright enough to blind him momentarily. Ryoko took the opportunity, flew up to him, and knocked him to the ground.  
"Damn you. You're so annoying," Ryoko said to herself as she hefted the operative onto her back and took off towards home.  
  
Chapter Twelve: Accusations, Denials, Subversions, and Escapes... Hell of a Way to Start a Meeting.  
One Week, Four Days, Nineteen Hours Ago  
The Conference Room aboard the Joker's Wilde was filled with over a dozen officers, chatting away endlessly. Commander Deevra sat at the front of a massive table, shaped in a large V, tapping his fingers against the smooth metal. He calmly scanned the room over to make sure everyone had arrived on schedule.  
"Good to see you're up and about, Lieutenant Commander Arik. I was worried I had shocked you into a coma," Deevra said as he spotted the slightly battered Gelsh.  
"Oh, yeah, Commander. I'm fine. I wake up in my quarters with a new badge of office on me and one helluva hangover," Arik replied.  
"Good to see you haven't lost your sense of humor."  
"That's probably one of the only things I haven't lost. I lost twelve good men to a bunch of Zeram worshipers and nearly got court-martialed for blowing up a Transit Station on my last mission. You're little recommendation saved my ass."  
"So, nothing new?"  
"Nope."  
Arik walked over to his seat and sat down, leaving Deevra to search the room for any other stragglers. After the third or fourth time, he felt he had enough of the staff to begin. "Alright, everybody, the meeting is in session. Sit down..." he said, "Or whatever you do..."  
Deevra's opening was cut short as an entourage of Jurai officers entered the room, six in total, surrounding Ambassador Ge'Kahl. They walked to the center of the V shape in the table and broke formation, allowing the Ambassador to sit, then falling back to stand guard just inside the doorway.  
"Glad you could make it, Ge'Kahl," Deevra noted sarcastically. "I see you've made a few new friends since I last saw you."  
"These..." Ge'Kahl said, gesturing at the Jurai officers, "...Are merely my guards."  
"I can't possibly see who you need protection from. Except for maybe yourself," Deevra stated, getting chuckles from the majority of the table.  
"Let's cut the skip-chat, as you Assembly people like to say. What is the purpose of this meeting?" Ge'Kahl shot back.  
"You know, I don't think I've ever heard anyone in the Assembly say 'skip-chat'," Deevra mused aloud, which only served to annoy the Jurai Ambassador.  
"Get on with it, Commander. I think mister Ambassador here is gonna burst a blood vessel," a Terran officer pointed out.  
"I suppose, Lieutenant Ryman," Deevra replied. He looked out across the table and continued his speech. "Well, Ambassador, this meeting has been set up to determine how we will capture Ryoko. As you may know, retrieval missions take a bit of style and finesse to be properly carried out."  
"I understand and agree," Ge'Kahl stated proudly.  
"Well then, the first order of business..." he paused thinking about his statement, then, "Great Maker I sound like a damn Analyst..."  
"I resent that!" Pheros stated unhappily.  
"Good," was all Deevra said in reply. Everyone in the room laughed aloud, except for Pheros, the stubborn Ge'Kahl, and the horde of Jurai guardians.  
Deevra waited a moment for the laughing to die down, then began again, "Now, Ryoko is a very dangerous criminal, known for destroying areas of land up to three miles in diameter at a time. Therefore, I think we should send down eight platoons of drop-troops to distract her and her friends, and then send a ninth platoon in to actually capture her. We will also have a pre-assault bombardment of the area by three squadrons of our fighters," he paused as Pheros raised his hand, "Yes, Mr. Accountant?"  
"Who are these friends you mentioned?"  
Deevra sat back in his chair and pressed a button on the armrest. A three-dimensional image appeared at the base of the V-shaped table, forming the images of six people. A young, black-haired boy, a purple-haired girl with a tiara, a little girl with blue ponytails, another little girl with red spikey hair, a curly-haired blonde bombshell, and a normal looking woman with straight, blue-black hair. "These are her friends."  
Ge'Kahl stared at the images with interest. "There's something familiar about these two here," he said gesturing at the girl with purple hair and the one with blue ponytails.  
"Oh, that's Princess Ayeka and Sasami. Heiresses to the Jurai Throne," Deevra replied.  
Ge'Kahl shot up in his seat, slamming his hands down onto the table. "Those two have been missing for six months! How do you know that they're there?"  
"I guess the Assembly's intelligence reports are just that much better than the Jurai's," Ryman pointed out.  
"I don't give a damn if the Assembly's information is better than ours or not. If the princesses are hurt, the Assembly will be in so much shit..." Ge'Kahl started, his tone furious.  
"Pipe down, Ge'Kahl, you want to wake the dead?" Deevra joked, staring at the assembled guards. "I guess you already have."  
Deevra's comment brought full-scale laughter from the already wound-up crew. They laughed with glee, pointing at the Jurai entourage with humored accusations. This annoyed the Ambassador, who quickly spoke up, "The Jurai do not find death amusing, Commander. I suggest you not speak of it again," he said coldly.  
"Whatever," Deevra replied. "Shall we continue?"  
"Yes. I just needed to get my point across," Ge'Kahl stated as he calmed down.  
"That's fine. We will do everything in our power to keep the Princesses from harm. Now, this one," he said, pointing at the image of the boy, "is named Tenchi Masaki. He is supposedly of Jurai descent, however, we have nothing to substantiate this."  
"He doesn't appear Jurai," Ge'Kahl said as he studied the image. "I doubt the rumors."  
"So do we," Deevra agreed, "He's probably just another Terran-like creature."  
"What about these two? They also look familiar," Arik asked, pointing at the image of the bombshell and the blue-haired girl.  
"That's Mihoshi and Kiyone. Both are First Class Detectives in the Galaxy Police. Mihoshi is the great-granddaughter of the Grand Marshal. Both are suspected of assisting Ryoko, since neither has reported capturing her. However, Mihoshi is being let off the hook. Kiyone, on the other hand, is to be arrested on sight," Pheros said as he examined a document in his hands.  
"What! Kiyone hasn't done anything!" one officer, his skin coated in a tightly linked layer of rock, shouted as he jumped out of his seat in anger.  
"Exactly, Alistar. She hasn't done anything. That's what makes her so guilty. So sit down," Deevra replied.  
"Yes, sir," Alistar mumbled as he returned to his chair.  
"The final individual is Washu, the insane scientist who has been missing for five thousand years. Threat Analysis feels this female is the only other truly dangerous individual in the group," Pheros continued, oblivious to the others.  
"Okay people. You know the plan and you know the targets. We have full tactical information on the targets on file, so examine them. This will not be easy," Deevra stated. "Other than that, are there any questions?"  
Alistar spoke up again, his voice soft and kind for one so hideous, "Yes, sir. I was wondering, how do we know that Ryoko is the real culprit?"  
"You can't be serious," Pheros said with amusement as he looked at the rocky officer.  
"Oh, he's deadly serious," Deevra commented, rolling his eyes.  
"How unusual," Pheros commented to himself. "Well, Officer..."  
"Dirvin, sir. Officer First Class Alistar Dirvin," Alistar replied proudly.  
"Fine, Officer Dirvin. You see, we have a recovered S.O.S. from one of the destroyed stations naming her as the culprit."  
"Has all the information been examined? I remind you that we recently received a report indicating Ryoko has been given a confined planetary parole after she aided the Jurai Empire in overthrowing that false Emperor Yosho."  
"I'm not aware of such a report," Pheros mused as he scanned through his computers files.  
"It's highly classified. No one is supposed to know about it," Deevra once again commented.  
"Then how do you know about it, Officer Dirvin?" Pheros asked, his eyes full of accusation.  
"Uhm, I..." Dirvin began, as he twiddled his fingers nervously. "Detective Kiyone wrote it. She sent me a copy."  
"Why would she send you one? What is your relationship with her?"  
"Well... Uhm, she's... sort of my girlfriend."  
"I see..." Pheros chuckled. "Well your precious report appears to be from a doubtful source. I believe personal feelings are getting in the way."  
"That's not it! Kiyone is the most trustworthy person I know!"  
"That will be enough!" Deevra shouted, pounding his fist on the table. "This meeting is ajourned. I want everyone at their assigned stations in twenty minutes!"  
Everyone scrambled out of the room, the occasional foot, paw, or tentacle getting stepped on. No one complained, though. They were all in a hurry to leave before the shouting really began.  
Deevra just stared in annoyance at Alistar. [The nerve of him!] he thought, [Actually defending that bitch Space Pirate Ryoko!]  
Ge'Kahl lagged about, trying to complain to Deevra about some nonsensical thing or other but the Commander ignored him, having Arik take care of the matter. He looked straight at Alistar and said: "Officer Dirvin, I'd like to speak with you alone for a moment."  
Alistar smiled in reply, his rockish flesh gleaming in the light as he spoke: "Yes, Commander Murishawa."  
Deevra grabbed the man's overcoat by the collar and dragged him into the next room. Once in, he closed the door, and slapped Alistar across the face.  
"How dare you directly defy my orders! Your opinions are unjustified crap!" Deevra shouted.  
"How can you call it unjustified? You've read the same reports I have... sir," Alistar replied, rubbing his face in shock.  
"The only reason why you're upset is because that tart of yours is on that planet and is going to be arrested right alongside that Space Bitch!"  
"You endanger the development and lives of an entire planet because of your personal vendetta against Ryoko, and you claim I'm only worried about Kiyone?"  
"I'm not endangering them!"  
"I suppose bringing a full-scale warship into their planet's orbit is going to go unnoticed by their major governments. The damage caused when you capture Ryoko will only be a few miles across. Nothing major," Alistar spat with disgust.  
"Bullshit! You're just afraid that slut of a girlfriend of yours is gonna get hurt!"  
"Kiyone's not a slut! She's a wonderful girl! You should know, we went to the Academy together!"  
"That was twenty years ago, Dirvin. Things change."  
"Oh, I suppose the fact that we've known each other for seven-hundred years means you're not an arrogant bastard anymore. All you can think about is killing Ryoko for destroying your home world. You've taken this assignment personally."  
"Shut-up you lying piece of shit! I'm arresting her because it's serving justice. Stop thinking with your dick, we've got a job to do!"  
"It's not justice you're after, Commander. It's blood!" Alistar just stared back at his friend with hatred. "You may have a job to do..." he said as he walked out of the room, "...But I don't!"  
  
Two hours later, Deevra sat at his command post on the bridge of the Joker's Wilde, pondering his argument with Alistar. [Maybe he's right. Maybe I am taking this personally,] he thought. [But Ryoko has to be stopped.]  
Deevra's thoughts were interrupted as Nesh'Rk announced with worry: "Sir, engineering reports one of the sub-space shields is malfunctioning."   
"If it isn't one thing, it's another..." Deevra thought aloud. "How bad is it?"  
"Pretty bad, sir!" Nesh'Rk replied, "The sub-space energy fields are ripping at the hull! If it damages too much, it will rip the ship apart! We can't take too much of it!"  
"Then slow us down! Bring us out of Jump into normal space to effect repairs," Deevra ordered. The crew quickly complied, and soon, the reassuring void of black space was visible through the viewscreen.  
The bridge quieted for a moment, only to be thrown into chaos once more as Vol spoke up, "Commander, one of our probes has just launched."  
"I didn't order any probes to be launched," Deevra argued. "Contact the probe."  
"Probe is out of range of communications and has activated Jump Gate," Quil'Nk replied, staring at the blue-red burst of energy made by the portal as the probe shot through it and vanished from sight. "However, I have a pre-recorded message from the probe. Time-delayed. We appear to have a runaway, sir."  
"Put it on the screen," Deevra demanded, his thoughts twisted with worry.  
The void of space darkened out, only to be replaced by an image of Alistar Dirvin. His face was guilt-stricken and his voice was sorrowful. "Commander Deevra. I have sabotaged the sub-space shielding and stolen this probe so that I may reach Earth ahead of you. Once there, I will prove you wrong," was all he said, and the image faded out.  
"Damn him!" Deevra shouted, pounding his fists on the chair's armrests.  
  
Chapter Thirteen: Field Testing  
One Month, Two Days Ago  
Dr. Clay worked with quick, calculating strokes as he repaired the damage done to the Ryoko duplicate. He had to admit to himself that he did feel some twinge of lust seeing this creature, a perfect replica of the female Space Pirate, strewn out on the table, naked. However, as all things, he held back his true feelings and hid behind science and vengeance. He constantly stared at her new arm, which was unencumbered with the skin coating the rest of her, to remind him of her artificial origins.  
"Are you finished yet, Doctor?" the duplicate asked, staring up at him with innocence in her eyes.  
"Not yet, now stay still!" he replied. Although her ability to speak surprised him before, he had quickly become used to it. He designed it to learn, so why shouldn't it learn speech? Reassurances like that were what kept him semi-sane.  
"Yes, Doctor."  
Clay quickly finished his work, connecting the last few wires in the motor reflex area of the clone's arm. "You may get up now. But do not go anywhere," he informed her. Obeying his instructions she sat up, swinging her legs off of the table, and sat up on it. She then sat there, absolutely still.  
[I must do something about that. She is so empty,] Clay thought to himself. [Perhaps that is best, though. Emotion was my last creation's downfall.] He waddled, on his thick, stubby legs, over to an antique closet set with ancient gold designs. He opened it and removed a red and black skin-suit for the girl. He waddled back and tossed it over the girl's body.  
"What is this Doctor?" the duplicate asked, holding the cloth up for examination.  
"Some clothing to complete your look. Here are the gloves and boots as well," he motioned, tossing more cloth to her. When the duplicate still just examined them, he impatiently added, "Well? Put them on!"  
Wordlessly, the duplicate jumped off the table, stood straight, and donned the clothing. First the suit, then the gloves and boots, which seamlessly merged. She stood tall and proud, a triumphant example of the Doctor's scientific abilities.  
"What now, Doctor?" the Duplicate asked as she looked over the clothing she now wore.  
"Now... Now, we test you. We make sure you can do what we want you to," Clay replied.  
"And just what is that, Clay? To get revenge on Washu? To kill her? You know you were assigned to escort her to Tokimi," Kagato said as he walked into the room, radiating his usual arrogance.  
"I know that, Master Kagato," Clay answered subserviently. "I will not attack Washu. We merely need the duplicate to distract her friends while we capture her," he said with a hurt look on his bloated face.  
"I wanted to make sure you understood..." Kagato stated, holding out his hand, palm upward. A green spark appeared, flashing with energy for a moment, then vanished.  
Clay jumped back, falling over some electronic equipment he had stacked there. The Ryoko clone stared at the Doctor for a moment then uttered a short, emotionless, chuckle. Clay became infuriated, while Kagato just laughed diabolically.  
"I'm so sorry, Master," Clay blurted as he stumbled out of the machinery pile. "Have we arrived at the field testing location?"  
"Yes. This better be good, Clay. Or you won't see a few sparks next time," Kagato spat. He turned and walked back out of the room, his long white hair flowing behind him.  
"Yes, Master. I understand," Clay mumbled to himself as he followed the green-clad man. "Unit One, follow," he told the duplicate, who obediently followed.  
  
Out in deep space, all is empty and vast, save a single construction of metal and plastic. A probe sending out calls into the deepest areas of space. It shudders, a wave of energy pushing against it. It is forced out, launched into the abyss by a large ship, adorned with a giant statue as it appears with rippiling waves of might.  
  
Less than a light-year from that, a larger constructed object floats, a space station intended solely for research. It sent out beams of invisible energy to and fro across the cosmos, searching for a meaning that may not be there.  
"Sir, the BorderZone probe has just been knocked out of transmission path," someone within the structure announced.  
"Give me a feed," another replied.  
"I can't, sir! We have an unknown object damaging our sensor relays!"  
  
Near the station, the Ryoko duplicate appeared, its eyes the same shimmering yellow, its face the same blank expression. She held out her hands, which cup a sphere of green energy. The energy lengthened into a spear, which she lobbed at the station. It shuddered, portions collapsing under the ferocity of her assault. She quickly followed up with another spear, and another, and another until all that could be seen of the station was a blur of green energy. Then, a massive explosion ripped it apart.  
  
"There, Master Kagato. I told you she would work. Although, I need to find a way to change the color of her energy assault," he spoke aloud in triumph.  
"That it may be, Clay. However, you are becoming arrogant, thinking one achievement can prove a point. I must rest now. Do not disturb me while I slumber or face dire consequences," Kagato replied in his usual calm voice as he walked away.  
  
Chapter Fourteen: Public Examination  
Present Time  
Sasami recognized the noise instantly. After living in the same house with Ryoko for so long, the young Princess could distinctly recognized the slight hum the former Space Pirate made whenever she phased through walls or teleported. Sasami ran to where she heard the noise, only to stop dead in her tracks when she found Ryoko.  
  
Ryoko looked at Sasami with her usual twisted, yet harmless, smile, lugging the unconscious and semi-burnt Naotaki over her shoulder. When the former pirate saw the shocked expression on the little girl's face she quickly stammered out an explanation. "He... attacked me... so I had to knock him out..."  
Sasami's eyes began to water and she bolted from the room in tears, leaving Ryoko dumbfounded.   
  
Ayeka spotted Sasami as she left and went straight to Ryoko, her face red with fury. "Ryoko, what have you done to my little sister? I warned you before..." she began, only to be stopped by the sight of the singed operative. "What is he doing back here? And why is he covered in ashes? Is this your doing, Ryoko?"  
"I don't have time to argue with you, little princess. I've got to get him to Washu's lab, fast," Ryoko said, shoving Ayeka out of the way.  
"First you burn him, now you want to save him. How noble of you," Ayeka pointed out smugly.  
"I had to. He attacked me first. Now I gotta get him to Washu for Sasami."  
"From what I just saw, it doesn't seem you're working toward Sasami's best interests by burning this poor boy."  
"Leave me alone, princess, I don't have time to play your stupid games," Ryoko replied coldly as she reached and walked through the orange portal to Washu's lab.  
  
Washu was getting worried. [Naotaki should have come back by now,] she thought to herself. [Could it be his will's become so strong already? That blow to the head he took from Ryoko must've shorted out his neural interface. Must be why he ran off. He's confused...] her thoughts were quickly sidetracked as an annoyed Ryoko carried the unconscious and charred body of Naotaki into her lab.  
Ryoko walked straight up to the genius stared down at her, and unceremoniously dumped the body onto the ground. "Here's your stupid clone," she said with obvious contempt.  
Washu bent down and examined the comatose Naotaki, noting the burns and wounds on his body. His clothes were tattered, his artificial skin was cracked and peeled; even his fur was singed. "What did you do to him?" Washu asked her daughter.  
"He attacked me, so I defended myself."  
"Defended yourself?! More like nuked an acre of forest!"  
"To each their own..."  
"I didn't raise you to act like this."  
"You didn't raise me at all, remember?"  
"He was supposed to protect you!"  
"What for? I can do fine on my own!"  
This bickering went on for a while, only to finally be interrupted by the arrival of Tenchi, Ayeka and Mihoshi. The three stood there for a couple minutes, unsure of whether it was safe to interrupt the two, until Mihoshi, in her feeble-minded way, broke in.  
"Uhm, Washu, Ryoko, have you seen Kiyone anywhere? She ran off with one of the Assault Mechas and then vanished."  
Washu and Ryoko's bickering quickly ended, they both turned to Mihoshi and spoke in unison, "What do you want, bubblehead?"  
"Uhm, I believe I just told you. Yeah, I'm certain I just told you," the blonde Detective replied.  
"Well ask me again! I was a bit busy!"  
"I was wondering if you've seen Kiyone anywhere. So, uhm, have you?"  
Washu straightened out her clothing and coughed. "Oh, yeah. She's in the medical lab. I had to sedate her."  
"Sedate her? What for?" Mihoshi asked ignorantly.  
"What for!? She attacked Ryoko! I simply brought her here to calm down. I'll show you," she answered as she walked into another room in the lab, the others quickly following behind her.. "Uhm, Ryoko, bring Naotaki with you," she noted over the shoulder to her daughter.  
"Why do I always have to be her grunt labor?" Ryoko murmured as she obediently grabbed Naotaki's comatose body and lugged him after the others.  
  
Washu led the group to her medical laboratory, showing Ryoko where to put Naotaki's comatose body first, and then pulling a curtain aside to reveal Kiyone, strapped down and sedated, in a pseudo-hospital bed.   
Tenchi almost yelped at the sight, quickly clamping his hand over his mouth to prevent the release. Ayeka gasped and forced her head to turn away. Mihoshi, always being oblivious to such things, just ran up to her partner and hugged her unconscious form. "Oh, Kiyone! I've been looking everywhere for you!" she shouted.  
Kiyone was slowly brought to consciousness by the constant shaking and pressure. She opened her eyes slowly and tried to look around, only to have her vision blurred by the blonde's hair. Kiyone tried to open her mouth, only to have even more hair assault her, nearly choking her.  
"Uhm, Mihoshi?" Washu noted as she saw Kiyone awaken.  
Mihoshi stops her assault, letting go of the battered woman, and turned to look at the scientist. "Yes, Miss Washu?"  
Washu just bowed her head down in resignation, sighing inwardly in mental anguish. "Nothing..." she let out in a harsh whisper.  
"Just what the hell happened to me?" Kiyone asked aloud. She looked around the room, her eyes settling on Ryoko. "You!" she shouted. "You bitch! You killed him!"  
Ryoko turned and looked at Kiyone strangely. "Just what are you talking about?"  
Mihoshi's eyes lit up and she almost jumped up and down as she spoke. "I know! I know!"  
Washu stared at the blonde airhead for a moment, then, with another sigh, asked, "If you know, then tell us, Mihoshi."  
"Well, the reason Kiyone's so mad at Ryoko is because Ryoko killed her boyfriend."  
"What?!" everyone in the room shouted at once, with the exception of Kiyone and the blonde detective herself.  
"Well, you see, Ryoko is under suspicion of destroying a whole bunch of space stations recently. That's bad enough, but when Kiyone realized that the last station destroyed had an old teacher and her boyfriend on board, she went nuts."  
"I didn't tell you about Alist..." Kiyone began to yell. She quickly shut her mouth when she realized what she almost said.  
"That doesn't make any sense. I've been here for almost eight months," Ryoko defended herself, setting Naotaki's prone form on top of an operating table. "I haven't done anything wrong for the last seven-hundred years!"  
"Yeah, well the evidence all points toward you, Ryoko," Washu explained.  
"And how long have you known about all of this?" Ryoko asked, her eyes burning with rage.  
"Oh, for about four days now," Washu replied. "But don't worry about it. There's no way you could have destroyed those stations."  
"Oh, and why is that?" Kiyone asked, straining against the harness holding her in place.  
"Because Ryoko doesn't have that kind of power anymore," the red haired genius answered.  
"Of course I have power," Ryoko said, her voice bordering on sheer anger.  
"Not since your last fight with Kagato, you haven't. Your power levels have been steadily dropping," Washu explained. "That's why I made you a Guardian."  
"Oh, so that's why you made this Naotaki guy," Tenchi realized. "To protect Ryoko from being hurt by the Galaxy Police or the Jurai if they ever came after her."  
"Exactly!" Washu responded, a large smile on her face.  
"You can't be serious!" Ryoko yelled.  
"Oh, but I am. Your levels are bordering on normal. Nothing can recharge you, either. You're using yourself up," Washu explained.  
"But I still have my powers..." Ryoko tried to reply, only to be cut off as Washu went into greater detail.  
"To a limited extent, yes," Washu said. "However, you can no longer use high-level attack power, matter rearranging, or elemental summoning," Washu said, noting in a low whisper, "Although you were never very good with the summoning anyway."  
"How dare you!" Ryoko yelled angrily, red-hot sparks flinging from her hands as she formed an energy blade.  
"Calm down, Ryoko," Tenchi begged.  
"Oh, the monster has to be protected by another monster because she used up all her power!" Ayeka stated with delight.  
"Damn it, Ayeka! I can still beat you!" Ryoko answered, gritting her teeth and raising her blade in a combatitive fashion.  
"I'd like to see you try," Ayeka dared, sticking her tongue out at the former space pirate.  
"Calm down, you two!" Tenchi yelled, grabbing each girl's arms.  
"You're right," Ryoko said, sighing as she deactivated the energy blade.  
"I'm sorry, Lord Tenchi," Ayeka replied.  
"That's not important right now, girls. I have to make sure Naotaki's all right. He took quite a few blows to the head thanks to Ryoko and I think that damaged his programming," Washu said, pushing the others out of the way and walking up to the unconscious body of Naotaki.  
"Is he going to be okay?" Tenchi asked worriedly, following behind the scientist. Ryoko and Ayeka quickly came after, leaving Kiyone and Mihoshi to themselves.  
"Hmm, you seem awfully concerned about a guy you didn't even ant around a few minutes ago," Washu chuckled.  
"Well, you see, he's here now... So I guess... Well... If he's protecting Ryoko than he's okay," Tenchi babbled out, trying to explain. When he realized what he said, he slapped his forehead hard in instant regret.  
"Oh, Tenchi!" Ryoko announced happily. "You do care about me!" and she instantly hugged herself to him.  
"That's not what I meant!" Tenchi tried to explain as he tugged at the girl wrapped around him.  
"He doesn't care about a demon like you, Ryoko. So let go of him!" Ayeka shouted, yanking Ryoko by the arm, trying to get her away from Tenchi.  
"Shows what you know, Princess," Ryoko replied, sticking her tongue out at the girl. "I know Tenchi loves me!"  
"I didn't say that!" Tenchi yelled desperately as the circulation to his head was being cut off by Ryoko's hug.  
"You don't have to be so shy, Tenchi," Ryoko whispered seductively.  
"Wha... What's going on?" an unknown voice asked. Everyone immediately stopped what they were doing and turned in the direction of the voice. Naotaki, they quickly realized, had just woken up.  
"Oh, my creations okay!" Washu announced joyfully. She started sweeping some of the ashes off of him and patted the poor guy on the back. "A little beaten up, but okay."  
"I am?" Naotaki asked as he sat up and looked himself over. "I feel like I've been deep-fried... Whatever that means."  
"He's not gonna come after me again, is he?" Ryoko asked, wary of the conscious Guardian's movements.  
"We'll just have to wait and see, Ryoko," Tenchi said.  
"Ryoko?" Naotaki looked up in surprise, then focused on Ryoko. "You!" he shouted, searching for a weapon.  
"Calm down, Naotaki!" Washu shouted angrily. "I didn't create you to kill Ryoko!"  
"You created me?" the Guardian asked. "But, I don't think..."  
"That's been one of your problems, Naotaki!" Washu yelled. "You don't think. Now, listen to me. You are a clone. I created you by merging two other people's DNA together and grew you out of a vat. Do you understand what I'm saying?"  
"I think so, but, I remember things I don't think I've done," Naotaki explained. "That doesn't make any sense!"  
"Around here, nothing makes a lot of sense," Tenchi answered.  
"Huh?" Naotaki asked.  
"Don't worry about it," Washu told him. "Now, Tenchi, get me my Mental Examination Unit, would you."  
"Your what?" Tenchi asked in bewilderment.  
"That silver helmet on that counter over there," the scientist answered, slapping her head with one hand and pointing at a counter with another.  
"Uhm, I'd like to, but Ryoko's..." Tenchi began.  
"Oh, I'm sorry, Tenchi!" Ryoko blushed as she let go of the young prince.  
"Uhm, thanks, Ryoko," Tenchi said worriedly.  
"No problem!" Ryoko replied happily.  
Tenchi quickly ran over to the counter and grabbed the bulky helmet Washu wanted. It didn't actually look very interesting, just a jumble of wires on top of a bowl-shaped helmet. He brought it back to Washu, who quickly grabbed it out of his hands and plopped it atop the Guardian's head.  
"Now, we should be able to see what sort of damage Ryoko has done to poor ol' Naotaki's cortex," Washu explained, getting a growl from the girl in mention. A moment later, a screen appeared floating in the air above Naotaki's head, displaying information and images related to his mental state.  
"So, what's wrong with him?" Ryoko asked bluntly.  
"I can't tell just from a cursory examination," Washu explained. With a click of her fingers, a large flowerpot came from out of nowhere and landed atop Ryoko's head. "Now, according to this information, Naotaki's erratic behavior comes from his being released from the Growth Chamber too early. He did not receive the full amount of knowledge I intended him to have. Therefore, he has some knowledge, but has no idea how he knows it."  
"Okay, so what do we do now, Miss Washu?" Ayeka asked politely.  
"Well, I can't just put him back in so he can be developed fully, so he'll have to learn everything from scratch," Washu answered. "This is going to require all of you helping him out. Even you, Ryoko."  
"What's that supposed to mean?" Ryoko asked.  
"You know exactly what that means, Ryoko," Washu answered angrily. "That means no more hitting him on the head!"  
"Oh!" the former space pirate answered.  
"Would you people please stop talking about me like I'm some kind of piece of meat!" Naotaki asked, yanking the helmet from his head.  
"Sorry," Washu answered, slightly embarrassed. "So, Naotaki would you please get off the examining table and stand up?"  
"Sure," Naotaki replied, doing as Washu directed. "Now what?"  
"Take off your clothes," Washu stated matter-of-factly.  
"What?!" everyone yelled in unison with the exception of Washu, and of course, Kiyone and Mihoshi who were talking between themselves.  
"You can't be serious!" Tenchi exclaimed.  
"That is very poor manners, Miss Washu!" Ayeka agreed.  
"If it'll get this over with any faster, do it," Ryoko argued.  
"Of course you would say something like that, Ryoko," Naotaki threw in.  
"How would you know?" Ryoko asked.  
"How should I know?!" Naotaki shouted angrily. "This little girl here just said I have memories I shouldn't have or something like that!"  
"I'm not a little girl!" Washu responded angrily. "I may be a little youthful looking for my age but I am certainly not a girl."  
"Oh, sorry," Naotaki said.  
"It's all right," Washu beamed, her attitude reversing completely. "So, get out of those clothes! I've got work to do, you know."  
"Okay, okay," Naotaki grumbled as he removed his shirt, which was flaked with ashes, but otherwise fine. "I feel like an idiot, though."  
"You're not the only one," Tenchi agreed, remembering all the times he had been caught, or more so, trapped, in similar predicaments.  
"What was that, Tenchi?" Washu asked.  
"Nothing, Miss Washu."  
"Good..." Washu replied, almost slithering. Tenchi gulped at this.  
Naotaki ignored this and removed his boots, then pants. After that, he was completely naked. Ayeka turned away in embarrassment, as did Tenchi, a trickle of blood dripping down his nose. Ryoko just stared, feigning half-interest. Washu just beamed with excitement as she looked him over. "That's my boy!" she announced happily.  
Naotaki just hung his head in embarrassment as Washu began poking and prodding his nude body with an assortment of instruments. He then winced as she pulled out a large scalpel and began hacking at his flesh, causing it to fall away and revealing his real fur-coated skin. Once she finished, she just stood back and admired her work.  
"What the hell did you do to me?" Naotaki begged as he looked himself over. "I'm a bat!"  
"No, you're a Draalthi, actually. The last of your kind as far as anyone knows. Basically, you're a humanoid creature who lived underground in giant caves. Your people grew fur in order to withstand the cold climate of your world, and your eyes used to be light sensitive. But that doesn't mean you have to go around looking like a humanoid bat for the rest of your life," Washu told him.  
"Oh," Naotaki answered sarcastically. "Then what am I supposed to do, wear some idiotic disguise?"  
"Not at all. Just look at your right arm and focus on it looking human," Washu instructed.  
"Well, okay..." Naotaki replied uncertainly. He raised his fur-coated arm up to eye-level and concentrated. Miraculously, it began to change shape, the fur vanished, leaving smooth skin behind. His eyes went wide as he focused on the arm, reshaping it into whatever he wanted.  
"Very good!" Washu yelled out, clapping.  
"Can I do anything else with it?" Naotaki asked as he started to change the rest of his form into something like his disguise.  
"Sure! You can do knives, clubs, guns, whatever. It's completely organic too, so you don't have to worry about jamming or nicks. You can heal almost instantly, and can change your own appearance to be whoever you want!" Washu explained ecstatically.  
"Let's see, then..." he focused on his hand again, and, once again, it yielded to his mental control. The flesh became malleable, forming into one large bladed piece of flesh. Concentrating further, its tone shifted, becoming metal-hued. "This is great!" he exclaimed as he tested it out sweeping it around in awe. He concentrated again, and the blade spread out, becoming a mirror. He held it up to his face and used the mirror to reshape his Draalthi features into something more human. He kept the slitted eyes, however, for reasons that escaped him.  
"You're absolutely perfect, Naotaki. I'm glad I created you!"  
"Big deal," Ryoko said. "So he can shapeshift, so what?"  
Naotaki focused on the mirror-hand and it reformed into a stump. The stump then formed a large indentation at the top and a long black blade extended from it, pointed at Ryoko. "I can do more than that, Ryoko," Naotaki told the girl with a smile. He turned to Washu, "Can I get dressed now?"  
Washu smiled twistedly, "I don't know... I kinda like you like this."  
"Washu..." Tenchi scolded.  
"Oh, okay," Washu said with a shrug.  
Naotaki glanced at Tenchi, nodded almost imperceptibly, then began putting his clothing back on. It was at that moment, when Naotaki was just finishing with his shirt, that Sasami came rushing into the room, breathing heavily.   
She quickly ran up to Tenchi and started yanking at his shirt.  
"What's wrong, Sasami?" Tenchi asked worriedly.  
"Some... Something just crashed outside!"  



End file.
